


The ugliness of jealousy

by SophiaHoppia



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Getting Together, Gladio loves them all, Hurt/Comfort, Ignis's POV, Insecurity, M/M, OT4 hints, Original Character(s), Pining, Summer, Texting, because I needed someone to be Prompto's ex, before the road trip, brotherhood era, established GladNoct, last year of high school, more tags might be added with more chapters, not yet together, the OT4 hints get stronger with every chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-18
Updated: 2019-07-17
Packaged: 2019-10-12 06:36:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17462459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SophiaHoppia/pseuds/SophiaHoppia
Summary: Prompto's class has been to Lestallum for a student exchange half a year ago. Now it is time for the Lestallum students to visit Prompto and his classmates in Insomnia.Usually, Ignis would support this cultural exchange, but the jealousy eats him up as soon as he meets Prompto's exchange student - his ex-girlfriend, who still loves him.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [promnisweek](https://promnisweek.tumblr.com/) day 6, prompt "Prompto's ex is in town and Ignis is jealous".  
> Usually, I'm trying to avoid uploading unfinished fanfictions, but I didn't want to rush things either, because I really like where this fic is going. The rest of the story is already planned out, I only need to write it!
> 
> Beta reader chapter 1-5: Eric Panda  
> Beta reader chapter 5-8: [Belli](http://archiveofourown.org/users/SunshineBabyCrow)

It was the evening of a hot summer day. Ignis was preparing some light dinner at the prince's apartment while Noctis diligently worked on his homework. The advisor was glad, that in his third year of high school the prince had finally begun to take his studies seriously without a daily reminder, although he wasn't sure if this motivation came from Noctis alone or if Gladio, the prince's shield and boyfriend, had his finger in the pie.

On the one hand, he had totally seen the relationship between his two close friends coming, after all, it wasn't difficult to guess with Gladio's endless flirting and Noct's endless blushing, but on the other hand, he was astounded they really had taken the decisive step and started a relationship despite all the circumstances. Ultimately, Noctis was a prince and had a legacy to continue, it wouldn't be a surprise if he had to marry for political reasons one day, but Ignis wished from the bottom of his heart that destiny had mercy on them and his friends could be happy.

The advisor himself was one step behind, as he had indeed already fallen in love quite some time ago, but didn't have the courage to confess his feelings. Although the problem was not really his _courage_ : He would confess his feelings to Prompto as soon as he was sure that the blond photographer reciprocated them. For Gladio and Noctis the confession had appeared to be an easy step as they were both obviously in love with each other. It wasn't like that for himself and Prompto. Even though he was so much in love that it sometimes even hurt and hindered his work as his feelings clouded his mind, the same couldn't be said about Prompto. The advisor didn't even know if his love interest was into men at all and therefore he saw no benefit in sharing his unrequited feelings with the blond and potentially making their friendship awkward.

The tactician's train of thoughts got interrupted as his charge spoke up. "Ah, I totally forgot to mention that the exchange students from Lestallum will be visiting next week."  
Ignis sighed. Sometimes he was glad that Noct wasn't his only source of information as the prince tended to forget mentioning important information as early as Ignis deemed necessary. "Are you looking forward to it?"

"Kinda, yeah," Noctis admitted, "It just sucks that everyone already knows each other except for me. I mean, I get it that I couldn't go with the class to Lestallum last winter because it wasn't safe enough for me, but still... they've all already spent a week in Lestallum together, it will be difficult to fit in the group."  
"Don't worry too much, Noct," Ignis said with a smile, "I'm sure it will take no more than one day for you to fit in, you are charming enough if you really try."  
"If you say so..." the prince mumbled, not really convinced, but the advisor decided to let the topic slide.

The student exchange.   
Ignis remembered this particular time of the year very well. Of course, he had only heard what Prompto had told them or what Noctis had mentioned after hearing it from his best friend, but it hadn't been an easy time for Ignis because of a certain event.

"By the way, did Prompto get a new exchange student?" Ignis asked after a while, trying to sound casual.  
"Huh? No," Noctis answered disinterested and startled when Ignis loudly dropped his wooden spoon into the sink.   
"No?!"  
"Uhm... yeah. That's what I've said," the prince confirmed, furrowing his brows.  
"But isn't his exchange student his ex-girlfriend?!" Ignis asked, staring at his charge, cooking long forgotten and embarrassed at how high-pitched his voice suddenly sounded.   
"Yes, what about it?"  
" _What about it_?" The advisor repeated, not believing Noct really had just asked him that, "Isn't this extraordinary peculiar for him? After all, he broke up with her, didn't he?"  
"He had broken up with her after a month of a long-distance relationship, yeah," the prince confirmed, "That hasn't changed, she is just staying over at his home for a week. She can even sleep in the bedroom of Prompto's parents since they are still out of town for work."  
"They'll be _alone_ at home for a whole week?" Ignis couldn't believe what he had just heard.   
"Okay, Iggy seriously, what's the problem?" Noctis asked, putting down his pen and shifting his whole attention towards his advisor.

"Well, imagine Gladio's ex would spend a whole week at his home. Just the two of them, his sister and father away on a trip. Would you like that?"   
Noctis visibly grimaced at the imagination. "Well, I... I trust Gladio, but I still wouldn't like it. Although I don't get what that's got anything to do with Prompto? I mean, yes, his ex will be with him, but it's not like he's in a relationship now, so, what gives?" Noctis stated and shrugged his shoulders.   
Ignis cringed inwardly. That really wasn't a smart move of him, after all, Noctis wasn't aware of the tactician's feelings for Prompto.  
"I just thought it would be easier for you to imagine the scenario this way. It's just... not proper to have your ex staying the night. Either way, why did they even pair up young men and women as exchange students?"  
"There was no other choice. You know how it is with Lestallum's population: They have way more women than men. It's no surprise their class has more girls and we have more boys," the prince explained with a shrug.

Ignis bit his lip. That was unreasonable of the school but also understandable. Furthermore, the students, as well as the parents, had agreed to this arrangement, so he couldn't protest. Noctis was already focused on his homework again, probably thinking this discussion was over, but Ignis couldn't let it rest. He needed more information.

"What's she like?"

"Who?" Noct looked up from his homework, visibly confused.  
"Prompto's exchange student," Ignis clarified, "What's her name? How does she look? Is she around your age? What are her hobbies? Had Prompto and her stayed in contact?"   
The tactician wanted to ask more, but as he saw Noct outright staring at him, he cleared his throat. "I mean... that's necessary information Gladio and I need in case something happened to you."

The prince raised his eyebrow, totally not buying it. "You're weird lately, Iggy."  
"Please answer my questions, Noct," the tactician said more firmly and hoped his charge would listen to his plea. Otherwise, he had to spend the night gathering the needed information in other ways. As the prince's advisor, he had access to all kinds to data if they were necessary to protect the prince of Lucis - and he had no trouble filing a report stating exactly _why_ a stranger from another town, staying with the prince's best friend, could be a possible thread.

Ignis took a deep breath. He really needed to get his feelings under control, jealousy wasn't pretty.

Noctis eyed him skeptically but sighed eventually. "Her name is Amica Adversa. Prom showed me some photos when they were together, so I know she has long hair. It's kind of blond? Or brownish? I'm not sure, it looked different in every photo. Kinda like your hair. No idea what colors her eyes have. Who does even remember something like that? What else did you ask? Uhm... she is in her last year of high school as well, so she has to be around my age, but I have no idea what her hobbies are. Prom's been texting with her ever since. I think she has texted him more often lately, probably because she'll be coming over next week," Noctis sighed, "Satisfied?"

"Thank you, Noct," Ignis said honestly. It wasn't much information but at least something. He wished he knew what exactly Prompto and her were texting about, but that would actually be an intrusion of the blond's privacy.

Ignis continued to prepare their dinner as he mulled about the next week. It didn't sit well with him at all, that this Amica-woman would stay with Prompto for a whole week. What if she still loved him and tried to seduce him? And even if she didn't love him anymore she would probably fall for him again in no time - Prompto was, after all, irresistible. If the blond really reciprocated her feelings and was happy with her, he couldn't do anything against it, but he had to make sure the young man didn't misjudge his feelings and got back together with her just because of a little bit of flirting and sweet-talk from that wicked woman. It would probably be best if Prompto and Amica were always surrounded by other people so that she couldn't cast a spell over him.   
Maybe Ignis was being over precautious, but his motto was to better be safe than sorry.

"One last question," the advisor said out of nowhere and the prince put his pen down, visibly annoyed by now.  
"I never thought the day would come, where _you_ are keeping _me_ from doing my work..." Noctis exhaled.

"My apologies, Noct," Ignis said and really meant it, "I was just wondering... If the exchange students arrive next Monday and Prompto's parents are still away on their business trip, who is going to pick up Ms. Adversa?"   
"Prom said he would just take the bus and pick her up from the main station," the black haired man explained and Ignis pondered for a little while. The exchange students were coming over all the way from Lestallum and would, therefore, arrive in the evening, when the bus used to be very cramped. Prompto's house was quite far away from the main station and the advisor didn't want to imagine the blond and his ex-girlfriend squeezed together in the overcrowded bus for almost an hour, falling against each other with every turn the bus took, getting even closer when other passengers shoved them aside, their lips accidentally meeting.

"We'll pick them up."

"What? Why?" Noctis asked, his eyebrow raised in question.  
"It's more comfortable for both of them," Ignis tried to explain his sudden suggestion, "and you'll be able to get to know her. That way it will be easier for you to fit in the group the next day, won't it?"  
"Hm... maybe. I'll talk to Prom about it tomorrow. Even though I'm surprised you're offering. Isn't your yoga class on Monday evenings?"  
"Not next Monday," Ignis announced.

As if he could concentrate on relaxing when Prompto was alone with his ex-girlfriend.

 


	2. Chapter 2

The rest of the week went by in a flash and Monday evening arrived faster than Ignis would have liked. At least Prompto had happily accepted his offer to drive them and that's how the tactician found himself stuck in the evening rush hour traffic on the way to the main station after a day with way too much work. This wouldn't be half as bad as it was if the other drivers would just act like normal people and follow traffic regulations instead of pushing and honking almost every second. Their crazy driving style didn't make anything better. Ignis inhaled sharply as another driver had the audacity to cut off his right of way and the advisor would have outright sworn if he were alone in the car.

But he wasn't alone and therefore had to keep up appearances. A glance in the rear-view mirror calmed him a little as he saw the mane of blond hair in the back seat, although he would have been even happier if Prompto's attention would be directed at him instead of his phone.   
"She just texted they've arrived on time," Prompto announced happily.   
"In contrast to us," the prince mumbled and Ignis sent him a death glare through the rear-view mirror, making the black haired man flinch.

"I've picked you up as soon as the council meeting had ended," Ignis stated, his voice cold but collected.   
"Don't worry, Iggy! We are almost there and we'll still be faster than going by bus," Prompto answered and his smile full of gratefulness warmed the tactician's heart.

With this boost, the advisor managed to keep his nerves calm and they arrived at the parking lot by the main station about five minutes later. Prompto got out of the car at once. "She has sent me a picture where she is waiting, I'll go pick her up!"

Before Ignis could even suggest they'd go together, the blond had already run away.

So much for not leaving these two alone.

Fortunately, it didn't take long until Prompto came back to the car, pulling a huge pink suitcase behind him. Ignis wasn't sure if he liked it that Prompto acted like such a gentleman around her or not.

Noctis had run to meet them as soon as he had spotted them and they had stopped walking as they exchanged greetings, leaving Ignis with the opportunity to inconspicuously eye up the young woman.

She had sharp green eyes and was about an inch smaller than Prompto. Her long hair, shimmering in blond and brown, was braided into one thick plait and casually laid over her shoulder, the tip of it disappearing in a way too revealing neckline of her top. The brown and green hair tie seemed to match her bracelet and anklet and her black skirt was so short it didn't even reach her knees, making Ignis wonder how her teachers and parents could even allow her to wear this outfit on a _school_ _trip_.

Ignis put on his poker face, accompanied by a fake smile as the teenagers finally came over and the young lady stopped in front of him.   
"Hi! I'm Amica Adversa and you must be one of Noctis's chauffeurs, right? Thanks for picking us up!"

Ignis felt his eyebrow twitch for a short moment before he had his facial features completely under control again. His smile widened as he bowed slightly but politely and his voice was sharper than his daggers. "Pleased to meet you. My name is Ignis Scientia and I am _His Highness's advisor_."  
"Oh, sorry, my bad! But then I guess you'll be perfectly capable of handing out _advice_ about the fastest way home! The home of this cute boy," she said with a giggle and winked at the blond, who blushed at the gesture.

Ignis took a deep breath and counted to three inside his head. He had tried to stay unbiased until he met her even though she was Prompto's ex-girlfriend, but he already hated her.

"I assure you," the tactician said, his voice even sharper than before, "no one would be able to take you home safely faster than me."  
"It's not always a good thing if men are fast," she answered with a sing-song voice, but Ignis decided to let this comment slide.

He went around the car to open up the trunk and Prompto put her suitcase inside, the blond was even thoughtful enough to take her handbag and stored it for her as well.  
"Aaw, thank you, Pompom!" She purred and placed a quick kiss on Prompto's cheek.  
"Y-y-y-you're welcome," the blond stuttered and the tactician loudly shut the trunk with way more force than necessary.   
" _Pompom_?" Ignis asked and wasn't sure if he even wanted to know where this nickname came from.  
"Yeah! I'm a cheerleader and Prompto's fluffy hair had always reminded me of a Pompom," she explained while she pulled his arm down, against her breast, to reach his head and tousle through his hair with her other hand, "that's why he's my cute little Pompom!"

Prompto's cheeks were redder than Ignis had ever seen them before and even though he looked unbearable cute it was even more unbearable that _she_ had been the cause of it.

Ignis had no idea how he should survive this week if he already felt like exploding after barely five minutes.

He was glad when they had finally gotten inside the car, which was reluctantly spacious enough to physically keep this annoying limpet away from Prompto in the back seat. Noctis had taken the passenger seat and was rather quiet as their guest kept on chatting about chocobos.  
_Chocobos_.

He wondered if she really was interested in the birds or if she just wanted to impress Prompto as she showed him one picture after another on her phone. Apparently, she had had the opportunity to feed and pet one of the birds at a carnival in Lestallum last month. Prompto's enthusiasm about his favorite animals was as endearing as always, but the way his eyes sparkled as he looked at _that_ _woman_ made Ignis want to throw up.

He gripped the steering wheel so tightly he could feel his leather gloves straining and it took all of his control to concentrate on the traffic instead of the passengers in the back seat.

When they finally reached Prompto's home after what felt like an endless drive, Ignis was conflicted if he should feel relieved or not. He dreaded to leave these two on their own, but he hadn't come up with a reasonable excuse to stay with them and he wasn't sure if his nerves would manage to stay even a minute longer. Constantly putting salt into his wounds would probably hurt less than watching this woman making Prompto blush and giggle.

"Make yourself at home, I'll be with you in a sec!" Prompto said to his ex, as he opened the front door for her, but came back to Ignis and Noctis who had gotten out of the parked car as well.   
The blond went over to Noct and lowered his voice as he spoke up. "You alright, bro? You were awfully quiet."  
"Yeah, yeah... she is just... a little overwhelming," the prince admitted and Ignis wasn't exactly sure how to interpret that comment.  
"She is like a whirlwind at first, I know. But you'll get used to it, don't worry," Prompto declared cheerfully and the corner of Noct's mouth just twitched as he tried to smile but failed.

"Thanks for driving us, Iggy!" Prompto said and smiled at Ignis, his cheeks still a little red. The advisor smiled back at him and thought that all the struggle had been worth it if it had made the blond happy.  
"You're welcome, Prompto. Just tell me if you need help anytime, I'd do anything for you," the tactician said and Prompto stared at him, probably confused about this slip of the tongue from the older man.  
"I mean, you're parents are still away," Ignis continued to save himself, "just tell me if you need another drive or anything."   
"Oh. Um, sure," the blond stuttered and looked anywhere but not at Ignis, "I'll just... tell Noct to tell you... if I need anything?"

"Pompoooom, are you coming?" A shrill voice came from the house, perfectly ruining the little moment Ignis wasn't even sure had existed. If he wouldn't know any better, he could think that that had been Prompto's shy way of asking for his phone number to have a way to contact him directly instead of having to rely on Noctis all the time. But that was probably just his wishful thinking. If Prompto wanted his number, he would have just asked.

The advisor didn't miss how Noctis rolled his eyes before he wished his best friend a good night and got into the car. The tactician followed suit and by the time he had started the car, Prompto had already run back inside the house. The blond must have been quite eager to leave him and go back to _her_...

Ignis sighed.

They spent the drive to Noct's apartment in silence, both of them recovering from the overwhelming whirlwind of a woman that had stormed by as the advisor tried to concentrate on driving and Noctis busied himself with his phone.

Ignis was lost in his own thoughts as he wished his prince a good night and continued to drive home himself. The traffic had dispersed by now and he was able to drive in peace, at least on the outside.

Inside his head and his heart were too many thoughts and too many feelings. He had expected the worse and feared that this woman would still be interested in Prompto even though he had ended their romantic relationship quite some time ago, but he still hadn't assumed that she would be forward and flirtatious to such an extent.   
That itself wouldn't be a problem if Prompto wouldn't be affected by her advances, but sadly the blond had blushed more in this past hour than he had in the whole month.

Ignis hit his steering wheel in frustration as he stopped at a red light. Why were feelings so complicated and annoying?! Why couldn't he just be happy that Prompto got affected by her and looked happy? The blond's happiness should be the most important thing - together with the prince's happiness and well-being, of course. But the advisor couldn't help being jealous and it made him angry. He was angry at himself for these feeling, he was angry how this woman shamelessly and openly flirted with Prompto and that made him even angrier because he lacked the ability to openly court Prompto like that as well.

Shortly before the tactician arrived at his apartment, he remembered that he hadn't even cooked for Noctis today and was on the verge of turning around and drive back, but he was too exhausted and quite sure that Noct would be happy to be able to order fast food for once. He made a mental note to at least write his prince a short message once he arrived and apologize for this negligence of his duties.

When he parked his car, he immediately pulled out his phone to message Noct as he walked to his entrance door. There, he looked up from his phone, after he had finished writing, and directly into Gladio's face.   
"Why are _you_ here?" Ignis asked in confusion, but didn't stop in his tracks, opened his apartment door and went inside.  
"Nice to meet you, too, Iggy," Gladio said, his voice playfully hurt, and followed him inside.

Ignis took off his shoes, laid his bag on the kitchen table and flopped down on his couch. He had no idea what Gladio was doing here, but he was sure it couldn't be an emergency, otherwise, the shield would have already mentioned that.

The advisor knew that he should be a good host and offer his guest a drink, but inside he was still fuming and trying to process what he had witnessed today. Just as he wanted to get up from the couch again, to pace around and busy himself with _something_ to take his thoughts off of this woman, he felt Gladio's large, warm hands pressing down on his shoulders, skillfully massaging the knots out of them.

"Noct texted me, that you looked about ready to burst, although he wasn't sure _why_ ," Gladio told him quietly, probably careful to not metaphorically step on any mines.

Ignis groaned in annoyance at himself. He must have lost his poker face if Noctis had realized something was bothering him. It had never been his intention to make the prince worry about him, Noctis had enough on his plate as it was with his upcoming graduation and the increase of his royal duties now that he was almost 18.

"Come on, Iggy," the shield tried again, his voice softer than anyone expected from a bulky man like him, "let me help you."  
"Why are you always that generous, Gladiolus?" Ignis asked in wonder.  
"Because I love you," the shield answered with such determination Ignis almost believed it.  
"Flatterer," he snorted instead, "you shouldn't flirt with anyone but Noct."  
"Noct knows and accepts that I'm flirting with you and Prompto," Gladio explained.  
"Prompto?!" Ignis's eyes snapped open and he laid his head back to look into his best friend's eyes.  
" _That_ 's what gets your attention? Not my feelings for _you_ but for _him_?"  
"Stop joking," the tactician mumbled and averted his gaze.   
"I'm serious," Gladio responded and squeezed Ignis's shoulders to fortify his statement.

It wasn't the first time, Gladio had mentioned something like that and Ignis never knew how he should interpret comments like these from the older man. They made him feel flattered and sometimes there was a tingly feeling inside his stomach he couldn't yet classify, but maybe it was time to finally spill his feelings about Prompto and get advice from Gladio. The shield had way more experience in the fields of flirting and love than the advisor had.

"I... might be in need of your advice, Gladio," Ignis stated, cowardly dropping their former topic.   
"I'll do whatever I can to help you, Iggy," the shield answered honestly and sat down on the couch beside him.

The tactician nervously bit his bottom lip and fiddled with his thumbs, before he finally started to tell his best friend, what was on his mind. He told him about the feelings he harbored for Prompto for quite some time now, how he wished for the blond's happiness but couldn't help being jealous. He told him exactly what had happened this evening, how this woman had dared to behave and how Prompto even seemed to be flattered by it.

Gladio listened quietly until Ignis had finished his agitated narration and exhaled groggily.

"I haven't even met her, but she sounds like a bitch," the shield said, not mincing his words at all.  
"Gladio!" Ignis hissed, "You can't know for sure how many flings she has."  
"Stop defending her, Iggy. She is our rival."  
" _Our_ rival?"  
"Alright," the shield sighed, "she is _your_ rival. So stop defending her. You don't even like her."  
"But Prompto likes her," the tactician mumbled.  
"Because she made him blush? Nah. Prom is inexperienced and insecure. I think he was just embarrassed about someone obviously flirting with him. You could make him blush as well," Gladio said with a grin, encouragingly nudging the advisor's arm with his elbow.

"I'm not sure about it," the advisor admitted.  
"Then try it, Igs. You have nothing to lose. Use your sex appeal and make sunshine boy swoon right in front of her. Revenge is sweet," the shield mentioned with a wink.  
"I, I don't, I mean, I can't, I," the advisor stuttered, a blush creeping up on his cheeks. Flirting appeared to be easy for Gladio but it wasn't for him.  
"You can do it, Iggy. I'll try to help as best as I can. And I'll make sure she keeps her hands off him whenever you are not around," he promised.

Ignis exhaled desperately. He wished, he could keep an eye on Prompto and her himself, but his duties kept him busy most of the time.   
"Will you accompany them tomorrow?"  
"Yeah, the whole day," Gladio answered, "They'll do a sight-seeing tour and travel around the whole city. I was assigned to come along and keep an eye on Noct."  
"Keep me updated what happens?" Ignis asked, for once seeking and accepting help.  
"Aye aye, captain," Gladio saluted.  
"Perfect," the advisor managed a small smile, "Thank you, Gladio."   
"Leave it to me!"

Maybe he would be able to concentrate on his work tomorrow if he knew Gladio would be with Prompto and do his best to keep this hag away from the blond.

The signal of an incoming text message on Ignis's phone took his attention and he unlocked his screen to read the message. It was from an unknown number.

_Hey Iggy!_ o(〃＾▽＾〃)o  
_Noct gave me your number in case something came up...  
Like, if I needed a drive or something.  
Only in an emergency, of course!  
I wouldn't want to bother you._ (๑ʘ∆ʘ๑) _  
And I'm just writing to you, so you have my number as well - in case of an emergency.  
Whatever emergency you could have, that I could help you out with..._ (T＿T') __  
uhm...  
anyways, thanks again for today, I owe you something!  
Good night! ヽ(〃･ω･)ﾉ

_This is Prompto btw. I should have mentioned this in the beginning, shouldn't I?  
Silly me, haha..._ (⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄

Ignis felt the smile on his face growing with every word he read. These text messages were so Prompto-like.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Gladio smirking at him. "W-what?"  
"Nothing, just thinking about how cute you two are," the shield announced smirking even wider, "I'll leave now, so you can text him back. It was about time you two exchanged numbers. And no, don't even give me that look. You _will_ write him back right now. You won't bother him and there doesn't need to be a national crisis to justify you contacting him. No backtalking. You wanted a wingman, you're gonna listen to him!"

"Aye aye, captain," Ignis fondly mimicked Gladio's earlier words, knowing full well when he had lost.  
Gladio gave him an encouraging pat on the back before he wished him a good night and left. The advisor read through Prompto's messages again before he typed a quick answer.

_Good evening, Prompto._  
You may write to me any time even without an emergency.   
And don't worry about repaying the favor, it was my pleasure to be able to help you today.  
I wish you a good night as well.

Ignis pondered and reread the message thrice before sending it. He was sure Gladio would have managed to word it more casually but the advisor wasn't used to casual texting. Maybe he should check how Gladio and Noctis messaged him and learn a thing or two from them, but for now, he put his phone away and followed his nightly routine. He had one hell of a workday before him.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Count on Gladio to suddenly hint at an OT4... I swear to you this wasn't planned.   
> Iggy was supposed to get Prompto's number directly after driving him home, but then Amica interferred and Gladio showed up and sometimes my fanfictions are just escalating XD'
> 
> But... all in all I'm still sticking to the plan!
> 
> And I'm already writing the next chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally a new chapter!

Ignis: _Are you with them yet?_  
Gladio: _Sheesh, Iggy... it's not even 6 o'clock yet. I haven't even left my bed._  
Ignis: _My apologies, I didn't know when you'd start the sightseeing tour._  
Gladio: _Not THAT early... even though your early is different, I guess._  
Ignis: _Probably. I'm already at work. Keep me updated as soon as possible._  
Gladio: _Don't worry, mister workaholic._

The advisor put down his phone and looked at the pile of paperwork on his desk. He really wished he could accompany Prompto and the others today, but he couldn't afford to take even one day off.

His night had been restless due to his agitated mind. He couldn't stop remembering how this woman had thrown herself at Prompto and his imagination tortured him with what else might have happened when these two had spent the evening and night alone at home.

The tactician had soon given up on catching any more sleep and instead had gotten up early and driven to Noct's apartment. Hopefully, no one had seen him this time, because he really wasn't in the mood for some cheap tabloid to speculate once again why the advisor visited the flat of his charge at half-past 4 in the morning. Little did they know that he had done nothing but silently prepare some cold breakfast and a lunchbox for the prince to clear his bad conscience about neglecting to make dinner yesterday. The empty pizza box told him that Noctis had eaten at least something even without him cooking.

Ignis had left the apartment as quiet as he had entered, and went to the Citadel even earlier than usual. Maybe he could get enough work done today, so he might have the opportunity to accompany Noctis -and thereby Prompto- on another day this week.

He had the volume of his phone turned up, but still found himself checking its display from time to time anyway. It bothered him that he wasn't able to completely concentrate on his work, but he wasn't able to stop his thoughts from wandering to Prompto.

 _Prompto_...  
Maybe he should send him a quick message? Just wish him a good morning and ask how the evening went?  
_No_.  
He wouldn't want to bother him or appear to be a stalker. If Prompto had the need to talk to him, he would message him.

He put himself together and managed to get some work done when suddenly his phone signaled an incoming message. Startled, he threw away his pen and unlocked his phone, hoping to find a message from Prompto. His smile died on his lips as Noct's name appeared on the screen.

Noctis: _Thanks for cooking, Iggy._

The advisor shook his head. He should be happy his prince had messaged him and was grateful for his cooking - and that Noctis had gotten out of bed on time, although Ignis was quite sure that was Gladio's merit.

The advisor couldn't contain a small smile from finding its way back upon his lips as he answered his charge. The prince had really matured during the last months and had become more reliable.

Ignis: _You're welcome. Have a nice day, Noctis._

The tactician immediately wondered if Prompto was already awake as well. He should be. The blond used to go jogging almost every morning.  
Maybe Ignis should send him a quick good morning message after all? But he still wouldn't want to bother him, especially if he was jogging right now.

But what if he didn't even go running this morning because he had a guest? Was he spending the morning with her? Were they eating breakfast together? Maybe he should send him a quick text to... to what even? He couldn't just ask him about his morning, that would seem... weird.

Ignis sighed. He needed to get his feelings under control and focus on his work. Soon Prompto would meet with his classmates and all the other exchange students for the sightseeing tour around Insomnia. Furthermore, Gladio would be with them to keep an eye on them. The advisor trusted his oldest friend to keep Prompto save from this woman's clutches.

Ignis checked his schedule and sorted out the most important tasks for today. He was used to having too much to do, but this week appeared to be especially loaded with work. While it might be exhausting, it could also be a blessing: Concentrating on work had always kept him from overthinking.

~

Two hours later Ignis realized it wasn't a blessing but a curse. He had already sipped two cans of Ebony coffee and wasn't sure if all the caffeine made it better or worse, but he just couldn't concentrate on his work today. Every five minutes he checked his phone for new messages. Which was totally unnecessary, because he hadn't heard the signal tone announcing an incoming message.  
Maybe he should write Gladio and ask how it was going? Was it a bad sign that his friend hadn't written to him yet? Did something terrible happen and the shield didn't want him to worry? Or was everything fine and he, therefore, saw no need to message the advisor anything at all?

Ignis bit his lip. He wasn't getting anything done as long as he kept pondering, so he should just check in with Gladio. He would merely send the shield a short text and then he would be able to concentrate on work again.

Before he had realized it, Ignis had called Gladio directly instead of writing him a message.  
"Iggy? Is something wrong?" The shield sounded very concerned and Ignis cursed inwardly. It wasn't his intention to cause his friend distress.  
"No, everything is alright," he reassured him at once.  
"Huh, okay. You usually don't call around this hour of the day, because you are drowning in work."  
"Oh, yes, of course. I just... wondered if everything was alright over there?"  
"Uhm, yeah, sure," the shield answered almost too fast.  
"Really?"  
"Yeah, just keep on working. I've got it under control."  
" _Oh my god, you are the best, Pompom!_ "  
Ignis inhaled sharply. That was that woman's voice. What were they doing? Why did she sound so... _aroused_?  
"Gladio, what is going-"  
"Just taking photos, you probably don't even want to hear this, bye!"  
" _A little more to the left, oh yes, just like that, Pompom!_ " _Her_ voice moaned not so far in the distance.  
"What-"  
"Bye!" Gladio said and then the line went silent.

Ignis put down his phone and stared at it offendedly.

What in Ifrit's name had that been? What kind of photos were they taking when this woman sounded like _that_?

Unintentionally, Ignis crumbled the report currently lying in front of him as he balled his fists in anger. He had always loved his job and never minded the deskwork, but today he loathed it. What would he give to throw away all these papers and get to Prompto immediately under the pretense of guarding the prince.

But no, Gladio -as the sworn shield of their charge- had been chosen to accompany them as bodyguard and Ignis was stuck with this bloody paperwork, while that witch was hunting down his cute blond friend.

The advisor took a deep breath and counted to ten.

It wasn't like him to let his feelings get the better of him. He tried to flatten the paper in front of him as good as possible and sent a quick text to Gladio.

Ignis: _I'm counting on you._  
Gladio: _I would never disappoint you!_

The tactician put away his phone for real this time and finally managed to get at least _some_ work done. His concentration was worse than ever, but he had no choice but to keep trying.

~

The council meeting at noon was real torture. He had the urge to check his phone every minute, but he knew it wasn't fancied. Therefore he just kept staring at the council members and watched their mouths moving, but the words just didn't register in his mind. He was too busy thinking about Prompto. Was he still on the sightseeing tour? Had they gone somewhere for lunch? Did Prompto enjoy eating together with this woman? Did they have the same taste and preferences in meals? What if she cooked better than him? Would Prompto start to compare her food to Ignis's cooking?

The tactician shook his head. They were on a sightseeing tour. There was no way she could cook for him now. But what about tonight? Maybe Ignis should come up with a way to invite Prompto for dinner. He could ask Noctis to call Prompto over to play some games, but then this witch would come with him as well and Ignis really didn't want that dull hag in Noct's apartment. She had no right to be there. No, he had to come up with another solution.

Ignis shook his head once more and pinched the bridge of his nose, thinking about this was getting him nowhere.

"It appears, you don't agree, mister Scientia?" A council member asked and suddenly all eyes were on him. Ignis felt his cheeks heating up as he felt exposed like he hadn't since his early school years. He always paid attention. It was impossible to catch him absent-minded! Well, _almost_ impossible.

Not wanting to get the council members any chance to hold anything against him, he cleared his throat. "No, it's fine. Don't worry."

A few councilmen eyed him suspiciously but soon their discussion about _whatever they were talking_ _about_ continued. Apparently, the tactician still wasn't able to completely focus on the topic at hand. Something about taxes? He really needed to get it together. He was supposed to use today's results to finish one of his paper for the king.

Fortunately, someone always wrote protocols about these meetings and -thank the Six- it wasn't _his_ turn today.

When the meeting finally ended, Ignis walked back to his office as fast as he could without running. Once inside, he checked his phone and saw a message from Prompto.

His heart skipped a beat as he opened his messenger app excitedly. Prompto had sent him a photo! It had been taken in the central park of Insomnia and showed the blond together with Noctis in front of the statue of Maximus, one of Lucian's most famous discoverer. They were both imitating the discoverer's pose, and while Noctis did a decent job except for his grumpy face, Prompto definitely nailed it perfectly. His arms were bent just the right way and his head was angled enough to the left.  
_Wait a moment_...

Was that what had happened during his phone call with Gladio? The tactician only just then saw the message, that accompanied Prompto's photo.

Prompto: _Amica took a photo of Noct and me! Isn't it cool?_ o(≧∇≦o)  
_We wanted to get Gladio on it as well, but he refused. Booooring!_ (✖╭╮✖)

Ignis bit his lip. It was a _cool_ photo, he really liked it. Prompto looked like he was having so much fun and the advisor was happy for the blond, but it also sent a sharp sting through his heart.  
He wanted to be there as well.  
He wanted to make Prompto smile like that and have fun with him.  
Not _that_ _woman_.

Jealousy was getting him nowhere, so the advisor tried to focus on the good things: Prompto had taken the time to send him a photo. Even though the blond was having a good time today and was busy with friends, he still went out of his way to have Ignis on his mind and contact him. As the tactician thought about it like that, a warm smile appeared on his face.

Ignis: _It really is a cool photo, but I'm sure you would have gotten the lighting better - as you are a far more advanced photographer than her. I'm glad to see you are having fun, feel free to send me more pictures or messages._

The advisor's finger lingered over the send button. Was that okay? Was he craving for attention too much? Was his compliment coming on too strong? The last thing he wanted was to creep Prompto away if the boy somehow got a hunch of Ignis's carefully guarded feelings for him. Reading through his message, again and again, he finally decided to just go for it and send the text. He stared at his phone for a good five minutes, but Prompto didn't get online nor read the message, so he put his phone away, ready to finally get some work done.

Firstly, he checked his work schedule again. He had planned to analyze the contents of today's meeting now, but since he hadn't been paying attention earlier, he had to wait for the protocol and use that as a reference later tonight.  
At least that left him with enough time to work on everything he hadn't gotten done this morning due to his inability to concentrate. He wasn't sure why, but after the picture from Prompto, he finally had it in him to get some work done.

The sound of an incoming message pulled him out of his concentration and he just then realized how tense he had gotten. When he checked the time on his phone, before opening his messenger app, he realized he had been working for three hours straight. Despite the pain in his neck, he was glad to finally be functional and productive again.

Gladio: _We're on our way home. You wanna come over to cook or should I make some cup noodles for Noct and me?_  
Ignis: _Please don't taint the prince. I'll go shopping and be right over._  
Gladio: _Hey!!_  
Gladio: _But if it gets you away from overworking yourself and makes sure you are having a decent meal with us, I'll let you insult cup noodles just once._ ♥

Ignis furrowed his brows. Was Gladio worried about _him_? That was nice of him but really not necessary. Betrayed by his own body, his stomach rumbled to remind him that he had once again skipped lunch and the advisor clicked his tongue.

~

After a quick trip to the supermarket to fetch all the necessary ingredients for a healthy but quickly made dinner, Ignis drove over to Noct's apartment. He used his spare key to enter and the messily taken off shoes in the entrance told him that the prince and his shield were already there. With a sigh, he arranged their shoes neatly and took off his own before he went to the kitchen.

"'Sup" Gladio greeted him sloppily as he got up from the couch and walked over to Iggy at once.  
"Good evening. Where is Noct?"  
"Shower," the shield answered shortly before he furrowed his brows, "You look exhausted. Did something happen?"

"Nothing particularly, just a lot of work. I need to finish something for his Majesty later, but I'm still waiting for the protocol of today's council meeting," Ignis answered as he took his purchases out of his shopping bag. He would go with simply steak and potatoes for dinner tonight. These were at least vegetables the prince ate without wrinkling his nose.

"Can't you just use your own notes? You usually don't care about the others' protocols," Gladio asked in wonder.  
"I... wasn't really taking notes today. I wasn't able to concentrate but never mind that. Tell me about your day," the tactician answered and tried to change the subject away from him and towards Prompto. He wanted to know everything that had happened today.  
"Woah, woah, woah, wait! _You_ weren't able to concentrate?"  
"Gladio... it's no big deal," Ignis shrugged it off and started to peel potatoes.  
"That is one hell of a big deal!" Gladio exclaimed just as Noctis entered the room, his hair still wet from the shower, a towel around his neck but at least fully clothed for once.

"What's wrong?" The prince asked as he looked from Gladio to Ignis and back.  
"Nothing is wrong," the advisor insisted immediately.  
"Iggy didn't take notes at today's council meeting, because he wasn't able to concentrate," the shield repeated agitatedly.

"Specs, are you sick?" Noctis asked with a frown.  
"Would you two please stop making such a fuss? I am _fine_. I'd prefer it if you told me about _your_ day now," the tactician insisted once again.

The prince furrowed his eyebrows even more, but he knew Iggy long enough to know when to give in.  
"What do you even wanna know?" He asked with a sigh, "We were walking around town with a guide. He even told us some historical facts I hadn't know before."  
"Probably because you didn't listen during your history lessons," Gladio teased.

Noctis shot his boyfriend an annoyed glance before he turned his attention back to his advisor.  
Ignis waited for more input, but nothing came. "That's it?"  
"Uhm... it was a nice day, I guess?" Noctis asked with a confused voice.  
"You guess?"  
"Well, yeah. Could have been better, but it was fine," the prince mumbled.

"Did something happen?" In the beginning, Ignis had intended to hear more about Prompto and this annoying woman, but his protectiveness-senses were tingling as he studied his charge's not-so-happy expression. No matter what, Noct's well-being always came first.

"Nah... nothing in particular. It's just... Well, it would have been better without Amica around," the young prince confessed.  
"So you don't like her either," the tactician stated.  
"No, I don't... Wait. _Either_? So _you_ don't like her?" Noctis asked in wonder.  
"So far, I'm afraid, I don't like her," the advisor admitted.  
" _So_ _far_ ," Gladio snorted, "you won't like her in the future either."  
"You never know," Ignis said wisely, but the shield gave him a look that said he wouldn't be fooled, so he added, "but you are probably right. I'll never like this woman."  
"You don't even ever call her by her name when you talk about her. You only do that with people you despise," the shield analyzed and Ignis blinked in wonder. Sometimes he tended to forget that Gladio knew him better than anyone else.

"Why?" Noctis asked and the other two men turned to him, "I mean, you've only met her once shortly."  
"He didn't even like her in the beginning," Gladio mentioned with a teasing smirk.  
"Gladio! Don't make it sound as if I would judge people before I even know them. I might have thought about her in a negative way when I first heard of her, but I gave her a decent chance to prove me wrong yesterday - she just failed to do so after mere seconds," the advisor explained, desperately trying to sound rational.  
"I'm not following you..." the prince declared and looked at his boyfriend for help.  
"Why don't you just tell Noct, what you've told me yesterday?" Gladio asked, but Ignis only bit his lip and focused on cutting the by now peeled potatoes.

The tactician felt his charge gazing at his back. He withstood it for a short while, but every time he looked at Noct he was greeted with a stubborn pout, which he knew wouldn't leave Noct's face any time soon.

The cook put the potatoes on the stove with a sigh. "Tell me, what you dislike about her."

Noctis eyed him suspiciously, probably pondering if Iggy only tried to change the subject, but answered honestly. "She is annoying."  
"What exactly?"  
"It's just... I don't like how much she clings to Prompto and how he always blushes around her..."

Ignis carefully seasoned the steaks as he listened to Noct talking about today's events. Something twisted in his gut as he heard just how much this woman had stuck to Prompto all day. She had always been right next to him and Noctis couldn't even talk to his best friend alone for a few seconds. The cook felt an odd little satisfaction as he outright threw the steaks into the frying pan and shortly imagined it was someone else sizzling in this heat...

He really had to do something about his jealousy and this exaggerated animosity.

"Would you mind..." Ignis began to ask, his eyes still focused on the stove, carefully deliberating how to formulate his question, "Would you mind, if _I_ clung to Prompto?"

"Huh?" The confusion was obvious in Noct's voice.  
"You would never even be that clingy."  
"I suppose that's right..." Ignis admitted as he bit his bottom lip and tried another approach, "Then, would you mind if _I_ made him blush?"

When the prince didn't answer, Ignis feared for the worst. Maybe Noctis just didn't fancy that Prompto spent too much attention to anyone else. After all, the blond was his first and only real friend he had met outside the Citadel. It might very well be that Noctis was afraid to lose him to someone else. Even though Ignis didn't believe that Prompto would ever leave Noctis. The blonde was such a kind and loyal person, he wouldn't even think about hurting his friends - ever. And even if Ignis was in love with Prompto and sometimes dared to dream how it would be if his feelings were reciprocated, he would never put himself between the two boys. Ignis cherished their friendship way too much.

"I wouldn't mind," Noctis said quietly.  
"I beg your pardon?" Ignis turned around, being so lost in thoughts that the prince's answer hadn't really registered inside his head yet.  
"I wouldn't mind, if it was you," Noctis emphasized and Ignis felt a weight falling off his shoulders.

"Iggy, do you..." Noctis hesitated and it was almost cute how he blushed, "Do you like Prom? I mean, like _like_ him?"

"Yes," Ignis was almost as surprised as Noctis looked when he admitted it so easily and without any hesitation, "Yes, I fell in love with him quite some time ago."

"I never knew..." the prince mumbled.  
"I did my best to hide it."  
"Why?"  
"I... didn't want to bother you."  
"Specs, come on," Noctis frowned, "You are not bothering me when you talk about your feelings."  
"Thank you, Noct."  
"But that explains why you want to know everything about Amica even though you clearly dislike her. Never thought you'd be the jealous type," Noctis teased and Ignis concentrated on cooking again because he wasn't fond of talking about the ugliness of his jealousy.

"Dinner is almost ready," the cook said without looking at anyone, trying to change the subject.

"Noct, set up the table," the shield ordered, the tone of his voice leaving no room for protest.  
"Gladio, he doesn't have to," Ignis interfered immediately, "I'll do it."  
"Stop pampering him, _His Laziness_ is old enough to help," Gladio stated.  
"Stop talking as if you were my parents..." Noctis grumbled, but got up from his seat and went to fetch the dishes anyway.  
"If you stop acting like a child..." Gladio chided.  
"I didn't even do anything right now!"  
"But it's cute how upset you got anyway," the shield admitted with a wink.  
"Stop teasing me..." Noctis groaned but put a quick kiss on his boyfriend's lips nevertheless.  
Ignis smiled fondly. It was always nice to see how those two had found their happiness with each other.

Gladio fetched some drinks, put them on the table as well and soon they sat down together to eat.

~

"So, have you told Prom about your feelings?" Noctis asked casually after dinner and Ignis choked on his Ebony coffee.  
"Goodness, no!" He exclaimed after clearing his throat.  
"Huh? Why not?"  
The tactician knew so _many_ reasons as to _why_ _not_ that he didn't even know which one he should name at first.  
"I simply don't wish to destroy what we already have," the advisor explained.  
"I don't think it would change for the worse if Prom knew..." Noctis said seriously.  
"Yeah," Gladio added, "the worst thing that could happen is that the kid would be flustered and his brain stopped functioning for a short while."

"I don't want him to feel uncomfortable or on edge around me," Ignis elaborated. It would hurt him way too much if Prompto started to avoid his contact. His heart couldn't take it to see him less often. He had gotten used to having Prompto around way too much. Even if the blond was visiting Noctis and not him, Ignis still looked forward to every meeting. Nothing soothed away the stress of a workday better than Prompto's smile and cheerful laugh. Ignis would do anything to protect that - even if it meant to go on living with the pain of always keeping his own feelings hidden.

"Iggy..." Gladio groaned, "the kid doesn't mind Noct and me being together, so he wouldn't mind you being gay. And like I said, his feelings for you would only make him flustered or honored or whatever. But nothing bad."  
"How can you be so sure?"  
"Intuition?" Gladio had the gull to answer and Ignis outright snorted and rolled his eyes.

"Do you remember when I confided to you that I had feelings for Gladio?" Noctis mentioned and even if he tried to contain a poker face, Ignis could see the smirk creeping up on his face, knowing exactly where this would lead.  
"Of course," he affirmed anyway.  
"I was afraid to confess my feelings for him and do you remember what you told me?" The prince pulled up his eyebrow and waited for Ignis to answer, but the advisor just got up from the table and started to put the dirty dishes into the kitchen sink.

Noctis didn't let that irritate him and continued his narration. "You said, that this fear was _utterly_ _irrational_."  
"Yes," Ignis sighed, "because emotions tend to be irrational and it was bloody obvious that Gladio reciprocated your feelings."  
"It's _bloody obvious_ that the kid admires you as well," the shield interjected.  
"That might very well be, but I don't want to destroy this admiration," Ignis explained as he busied himself with washing the dishes, "And in case you had forgotten: admiration and love are two different things. Prompto's parents are almost never at home. Maybe he just looks up to me as kind of a role model? It would certainly shock everyone if their father-figure suddenly confessed romantic feelings for them - a man nonetheless."  
"Sheesh, don't make this weird, Iggy," Gladio grimaced.  
"Prom is pansexual," the prince simply states, "in case you ever worried about that."

Ignis blinked and his hands stopped moving in the sink. That information was indeed new to him. "I thought he was only interested in women."  
"How? He gushes almost all the time over the male characters in our fighting games," Noctis said with a chuckle.  
"I thought he only admired their strength and maybe wished to be like them?" Ignis tried to save his statement, even though he wasn't that convinced of it anymore by now.  
"And that's why he says things like, and I quote, _'Oh Six, his abs are the sexiest thing in video game history ever'_?" The prince asked, his voice a not so bad impression of Prompto's.  
"... Yes?"  
"Iggy," Gladio said with a sigh, "no hetero guy would say that. Ever."  
"Well, I..." Ignis chewed on his bottom lip, "How should I know? Apparently, there are no heterosexual men in my environment!"

The advisor pouted for a short moment before he gave up and fell in line with the laughter of his friends. Maybe his feelings were indeed making his way of thinking way too irrationally.

"Seriously, Specs," the prince said after a while as Ignis had turned around and dried off their plates, "I know Prompto well enough, he wouldn't freak out in a negative way if you told him. I even remember that one time when we discussed if you or Gladio were sexier and we both just couldn't decide but came up with an endless list of sexy traits you both..." Noctis stopped in his tracks and slammed a hand on his own mouth as he realized what he just confessed.

"Sunshine boy thinks I'm sexy?" Gladio said at the same moment as Ignis, flushed way up to his ears, exclaimed, "You _both_ think I'm _sexy_?"

"W-we were just talking theoretically! And maybe we had secretly drunken a little too much beer," Noctis babbled and Ignis's eyes glared, "I, shit, I just made it worse, didn't I? Uhm, we weren't _that_ drunk, Specs, seriously, don't worry! Aah, speaking of that, we are going to a bar tonight!"

"And just who do you think this _'we'_ contains?" Ignis asked, fully in his mother-hen mode now, Noct's earlier confession completely forgotten.  
"Uhm... everyone from class and the exchange students?"  
The advisor's eyes narrowed and his tone was icy, " _You_ are only 17. I won't allow it."  
"Speeecs, come on! Gladio will be with me as a guardian," Noctis begged and Ignis threw a gaze towards the shield that spoke of pure betrayal.

"I thought you would appreciate it if I took an eye on them," Gladio explained as he hold up his hands in defense, "You know, that Amica girl is already 18 and she will be there with Prom."  
"What?!" Ignis couldn't believe what he had just heard. What was that woman's goal? Did she intend to get Prompto drunk to have her way with him? An icy shiver went down his spine just thinking about it.  
"I shall accompany you as well," Ignis decided without further ado.  
"Not that I mind, but... didn't you say you had to finish some work for the king by tomorrow morning?" Gladio asked with a raised eyebrow.

Ignis checked his phone and saw that an e-mail with the protocol had arrived by now.  
" _Curses_..."

The advisor bit his lips and thought through his possibilities. It was beyond question that he skipped his work for the king, but it was also without question that he let Prompto alone in such a dangerous situation.

"I'll go with you and finish the work tonight," the tactician declared.  
"Iggy, you won't skip sleep more than necessary again," Gladio reprimanded him, "I thought we were over that bad habit of yours."  
"It is _not_ unnecessary in this case," the advisor huffed.  
"Iggy... have some faith in us. Noct and I will keep Prompto out of her clutches, promise," Gladio assured, his voice firm but smooth and Ignis felt his resolve waver. Gladio was right, that was the most rational decision.

"Alright," he gave in.

"Leave it to us, Specs!" Noctis finally dared to speak up again.  
"I won't take any form of consideration if _you_ drink too much and aren't feeling well tomorrow. I don't appreciate you drinking at all at your age," the advisor declared and the prince slipped down in his chair a little to get away from the tactician's gaze.  
"Don't worry, Igs, I've got him," Gladio chuckled even as Ignis rolled his eyes, knowing full well how much Gladio himself enjoyed drinking.

As Ignis looked at his phone once more to check the time, he only now noticed two text message notifications. Apparently, Prompto had finally answered to his message from this afternoon, but Ignis hadn't heard his notification sound. Maybe it was during his drive to Noct's apartment when his phone had been in his bag on the backseat.

Prompto: _I'm not that good of a photographer as you give me credit for!_ （ﾉ｡≧◇≦）ﾉ  
_But thanks a lot anyway._ ＼（＾▽＾）／

The advisor smiled as he read the texts. Prompto was always so humble.

The second message had a photo attached.

Prompto: _This is my outfit for tonight! You think that's okay for a night out?_ (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧

Ignis took in a sharp breath as he stared at the photo. Prompto had taken it in front of his bathroom mirror and was wearing some very tight dark grey jeans together with a loose white tank top. The words rock'n'roll were printed on it in huge black letters, but Ignis's gaze was more focused on the top of Prompto's chest, which was clearly visible thanks to his outfit.  
His blond hair was styled as usual and he made a peace sign with his free hand, happily grinning at the camera.

The advisor was so lost into the photo that he hadn't even realized Gladio sneaking up on him to look over his shoulder. Only when the shield whistled in appreciation, the tactician woke up from his trance and turned off his phone screen to hide the picture, even though Gladio's whistle and the wiggle of his eyebrows made it clear that he had already seen enough.

"Can't wait to see his ass in these trousers," the shield whispered hoarsely.  
"Gladio!"  
"Don't worry," Gladio chuckled before he winked at his friend, "I'll try to take a picture for you."  
"D-Don't go taking pictures of the rear of a minor," Ignis reprimanded.  
"Nah, I'll just take a picture of one of my friends and send it to another one of my friends. All good," the shield whitewashed his intentions, "And don't even try to deny that you want to see it."

"Well, I..." Ignis tried to fish for an answer but hadn't it in him to object his friend. Instead, he turned around to his charge, "Doesn't it bother you when he checks out other men?"  
"Oddly enough," Noctis admitted with a shrug of his shoulders, "it doesn't bother me at all when it's Prompto or you."

Gladio blew a kiss to his boyfriend and Noct blushed before he blew a kiss back after a short moment of hesitation.

"I give up," Ignis resigned and fetched his bag, "I need to finish this work and I guess you two have to get ready to go out. I don't want you to be late, Prompto shouldn't spend any more minutes alone with this woman than absolutely necessary."

"Don't worry, Iggy. I'll shield the kid from her advances as good as possible," Gladio said and threw him a thumbs up.  
"Yes, thank you," Ignis said, but hesitated after he had put on his shoes. Looking at his charge, the advisor spoke up again, "Noct, I... I just wanted to make clear that it's not like I begrudge Prompto to get a girlfriend if he wishes to... and she is good to him... and makes him happy, and..."  
"Specs, stop it," the prince interrupted his advisor before he could get even more humble, "I know you aren't a bad person and she is a bitch."

"Language, Noct," Ignis reprimanded on reflex and Noctis rolled his eyes, "Maybe you _are_ spending too much time with Gladio lately."  
"Hey! Leave me out of this," the shield complained.  
"Yes, yes," Noctis mumbled as he waved his advisor goodbye and went to his room to get ready for tonight.

"Don't stay up working too late, Iggy," Gladio said with a soft voice and Ignis huffed shortly.  
"And you are calling _me_ a mother hen."

"Also don't forget to answer Prompto's message," the shield teasingly added with a wink as the advisor left the apartment.  
"I won't."

~

Ignis: _It is a really magnificent outfit, Prompto. Please stay with Gladio tonight and be careful that no one tries to take advantage of you. Some people tend to be quite meddlesome when drunk._

Ignis: _Furthermore, this selfie does prove that your photography skills are indeed extraordinary._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took me forever!! No idea why, but it was so difficult to write at the beginning... Nevertheless, it was necessary to get Noct on board and to show how much Iggy gets affected by his own jealousy.  
> Also, count on me to write a whole chapter without Ignis and Prompto even meeting in a Promnis fanfiction. Instead, the OT4 vibes got stronger, I just couldn't help it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took me so long, but this chapter just kept getting longer and longer... I've decided to split it up into two chapters now!

It was early in the morning and Ignis had just reached the Citadel premises. It had been another short night for him even though he hadn't gone to the bar with Prompto and the others, which had probably been a wise decision.  
  
On the one hand, he had taken way more time than anticipated to finish his work for the king -which certainly was due to the horribly written protocol his colleague had produced- but then again it was his own fault for not having been paying attention and therefore being in need of the protocol in the first place. At least Gladio had stayed true to his word and had sent him a few pictures of Prompto in his magnificent outfit. Staring at these pictures for longer than appropriate probably added to him taking longer to finish his work as well.  
  
On the other hand, Noctis had sent him a few text messages yesterday night as well, stating that this woman was even more clingy and unbearable when she was tipsy and if it hadn't been for Prompto, the prince wouldn't have stayed any second longer in her presence.  
  
The advisor was glad that Noctis had taken it upon him to watch over the blond. To his regret, the prince wasn't really able to pinpoint the blond's opinion on the whole situation. He had messaged him that Prompto was blushing as she flirted with him, but he was completely right when he mentioned that Prompto blushed very often and in any kind of situation. Still, Ignis was convinced that he would feel better if he experienced their interactions himself. He preferred to investigate important topics first-hand to generate a more accurate result, even though the reminiscence of Monday evening still made his gut turn around. He hadn't expected this woman would be _that_ forward to gain Prompto's attention and affection, but the tactician wasn't someone who got surprised twice by the same situation. This time he was prepared to observe and calmly analyze exactly what was going on between them and how Prompto felt about it. Once he had collected enough information he would surely be able to calculate a surefire plan to free Prompto from her clutches if he didn't wish to be there. And if he couldn't come up with any plan, he would just have to physically separate them. Shouldn't be too difficult, right? Also, for the rare chance that Prompto actually enjoyed being at her mercy, he just hoped that he was _truly_ happy with it, although that thought made Ignis spitting tacks.  
  
Motivated by the knowledge that he would be able to actually _do_ something today when he showed the students around the Citadel instead of sitting in the background and relying on Noct's and Gladio's messages, Ignis went to deliver his report. He didn't expect the king to be in his office so early in the morning, but as he preferred to be better safe than sorry, he knocked on the door anyway. He was more than surprised when he immediately heard an answer. "Come in."  
  
When Ignis entered the office he saw Regis sitting down on his work desk, looking tired and stressed at the same time, despite the early morning hours. Clarus, who was walking around the room while talking to someone on the phone, acknowledged Ignis's arrival with a short nod. The advisor bowed and wished the king a good morning. It was obvious that something had happened, but before he could speak up and ask, Clarus's firm voice echoed through the office.  
"Quit fishing for excuses and do what you are told, son. You are an Amicitia."  
  
That answered at least the question _who_ Clarus was talking to. Ignis could already hear Gladio complaining to him later, the young Amicitia hated it whenever his father played the _family_ _tradition_ card. The young shield had always been honored by his heritance and took on his job with pride, but he still hated it when he was told who he was supposed to be or what he had to do just because of his family name.  
  
"Did something happen?" Ignis asked as Clarus hung up his phone with a sigh, not even listening to his son's response.  
"Unfortunately, mister Futtilis has fallen ill," the king explained and pinched his nose in exhaustion.  
  
The advisor had to thank his etiquette lessons from stopping him to blurt out an annoyed _'Again?'_. When the king's personal advisor had retired due to his age, the former councilman mister Futtilis had taken over the job. From what Ignis had heard, the man did his work diligently but slowly and was ill more often than healthy. His apprentice miss Studiosa had to take over his workload most of the time but it often was too much or too complicated for the inexperienced young lady, causing Ignis or one of his colleagues to take over some of the urgent work.  
  
"What about miss Studiosa?" The tactician asked even though the exasperated looks of his majesty and his shield already let him guess that he probably wouldn't like the answer.  
"Sick as well, I'm afraid," the king explained, clearly not happy about this turn of events, "I am sorry to put this upon you when you already have too much work this week, but you really need to take over a few important tasks from mister Futtilis. We thought it wise if Gladiolus took over today's task of guiding the students through the Citadel and the training grounds in your stead. Then you are able to concentrate on the additional paperwork, although I'm afraid there was a problem?" His majesty directed his last words at his shield, an eyebrow raised in question.  
  
"He doesn't want to," Clarus grumbled, "I have no idea what his problem is, but he insisted that Ignis should show around the students and watch over Noctis while he takes over some of the paperwork instead. It makes no sense. He never liked deskwork and I'm not sure if he'll manage to get everything done. He's simply lacking the experience for some tasks."  
  
Ignis took in a sharp breath. He was absolutely sure that Gladio was doing this for his sake. The shield tried to do everything in his power for Ignis to be able to spend time with Prompto. He really had to thank him for that.  
  
"Gladiolus wants to spend time _away_ from my son?" Regis frowned, more worry lines finding their way upon his forehead, "Six forbid! They didn't have a lover's quarrel again, did they?"  
  
"Ah, no, they didn't," the advisor immediately cleared up the misunderstanding to lift his majesty's sorrows, "I think he might be doing that for my sake, I-"  
Ignis stopped mid-sentence. He couldn't confess it was because of his selfish feelings and his urge to be with Prompto, but he couldn't lie to his king either. Well, there shouldn't be a problem with bending the truth a little, should there?  
He cleared his throat and continued, "He is under the impression that I'm working too much lately. I assured him that I'm used to working a little overtime, but he got angry because I even had to skip training last week and he doesn't want a repetition of me fainting from exhaustion ever again - although I assured him that had been a one-time mistake. If you allow, I'll talk to him and we will decide how to split up today's work between the two of us. Naturally, I'll see to it that everything will be done accordingly and in due time."  
  
"He really cares about you," Clarus stated with an unusual smile and Ignis wasn't sure what to make out of this information.  
"I apologize for the increase of workload lately," Regis said sincerely and Ignis immediately shook his head, humbly objecting. "It's alright, please don't worry!"  
"It is not alright, it _is_ too much," the king sighed, "but I know you'll never admit that or complain about it. We really hope that miss Studiosa will be able to take over more work soon, she is a fast learner. Until then we need to rely on you, Ignis. Please do as you see fit."  
"I won't disappoint you, your majesty," the tactician bowed.  
"I know you won't," Regis answered with a smile and Clarus nodded at him before the advisor left the office.  
  
Ignis went to mister Futtilis's office, where his secretary was already awaiting him and briefed him about everything that needed to be done. The advisor left with an even taller pile of documents than he had feared and went back to his own office, where he put everything down on his desk.  
  
He put out his phone and called Gladio, ready to reprimand him about his behavior.  
  
"Morning, Iggy," the shield mumbled as he picked up his phone.  
"Gladiolus," the advisor said with a stern voice.  
"Oh-oh."  
"I really appreciate you caring about me, but you can't just turn down an instruction by the king relayed to you by your father!"  
"Sorry, did my old man get angry at you as well? Was bad enough that I to listen to the same old story about duty and tradition."  
"What? No," Ignis frowned. If he didn't know any better he would think that Gladio was only worried about Ignis getting into trouble and wasn't sorry about his behavior. "We've agreed that we'd split up today's tasks among us on our own account."  
"Sweet. I knew I could count on you to clear this up!"  
"Gladiolus..." Ignis reprimanded his friend.  
"What? All's well that ends well. I'll take over the paperwork, you'll spend time with Prompto."  
Ignis sighed.  
"It's a matter of principle, Gladiolus. You can't just disobey orders."  
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Don't worry. I'll apologize to my father and the king."  
"Good. When will you be at the office?"  
"I'll drive there now, right after calling Noct to make sure he gets up."  
"Okay, drive safely. See you soon."  
"Yup, bye."  
  
By the time Gladio arrived at the advisor's office, Ignis had already skimmed through all the work documents and sorted out everything which needed to be done today. The pile was larger than he liked, but complaining about facts would do nothing against them.  
  
"Did you manage to wake up Noct?" Ignis asked after greeting his friend.  
"It took a few calls, but yeah, he's up and will be on time. Nyx will drive him," Gladio answered.  
"What about his breakfast?"  
"Iggy, he is 17, not 7. He can manage to make himself a sandwich," the shield deadpanned.  
"My apologies, you are right. Sometimes I still regard him as a child," the tactician sighed.  
"He's the same age as blondie and you don't see _him_ as a child, do you?" Gladio grinned and Ignis cleared his throat as a blush heated up his cheeks.  
  
Ignoring his friend's former question, the advisor briefed the shield about the paperwork he needed to get done and thanked him for taking over this work so he could show the students around and spend some time with Prompto just as planned.  
"Do me a favor and use the time wisely, Iggy," Gladio requested.  
"And just how do you expect me to do that?" The tactician asked in wonder, not sure what the shield had in mind.  
"Ah, you know: flirt with him, make some body contact, impress him with your knowledge, get between him and her..." the shield specified and made vague gestures with his hands.  
"I'll... try to," Ignis answered because he wasn't sure he could do that but also knew that his friend wouldn't take no for an answer.  
  
When everything was settled and Gladio was ready to start working, Ignis checked his watch and saw that he still had a few minutes to spare.  
"Do I want to ask how your evening at the bar went?"  
Gladio looked up from the first paper with a dirty grin. "You mean besides from the _ass_ quisite pictures I've sent you?"  
The tactician cleared his throat. "Yes, besides from what I've... already seen."  
"I guess, you wanna ask, but you sure as hell won't like the answer."  
Ignis immediately shot him a worried look. Had it been worse than feared?  
  
The shield groaned as soon as he spotted the advisor's pale face. "Let's just say she gets even more assertive and flirty when she is tipsy. Prom seemed to enjoy it, but I'm not sure if he just enjoyed getting flirted at or if it was because of her explicitly. You know how easily he blushes."  
"Noctis had mentioned her clinginess as well," Ignis mumbled bitterly, "And maybe Prompto does like her that much..."  
"Not sure. And to be honest I don't think she is his type. Well, only one way to find out! Go out there and fight for him! Show him your sex appeal," the shield said with a smirk and wiggled his eyebrows.  
  
" _My_ sex appeal? I think you are confusing me with yourself," the tactician snorted.  
"No, you _are_ sexy as well, Iggy, trust me. Just be a little more self-confident and go get him! And good to know you find me sexy as well," the shield added with a wink which the advisor outright ignored, even though a pleasant tickling went through his body.  
  
Ignis took a deep breath. The more often Gladio said these things, the more likely Ignis was to believe him. Maybe he really just had to take the initiative and win Prompto over?  
  
The advisor thanked his friend once again before he went down to the entrance hall of the Citadel where the students should arrive shortly.  
  
True to his thought, Ignis managed to reach his place of destination just right before his visitors. The students were accompanied by four teachers, two from Insomnia and two from Lestallum, and everyone looked impressed as they entered the ostentatious entrance hall of the Citadel.  
  
It didn't take long to spot Prompto among the students, his beautiful blond hair a rarity among the others. Of course, the accursed woman was right next to him.  
At least the students were all wearing their school uniforms today, taking the opportunity away from her to dress up scandalously revealing again - even though she wore her skirt too high up, resulting in her showing off way too much of her legs.  
As always, Prompto looked very attractive in his school uniform -and that wasn't only because it was a suit- the blond definitely wore it better than his classmates. Noctis however had once again been too lazy to properly adjust his necktie. Nyx, who had accompanied the prince, blew Ignis a kiss as he walked by him, prompting the advisor to cast him a stern look as he noticed Prompto watching the short exchange in confusion.  
  
After welcoming the teachers and confirming shortly that there were no changes of plan, the advisor greeted the students as well and briefed them about today's course of action: At first he would guide them through the Citadel, then they'd eat at the Citadel's canteen and in the afternoon they would be shown around the Kingsglaive's training grounds, where they might even try out some special exercises.  
  
The students sounded especially excited about the plans for the afternoon and Ignis was happy there seemed to be at least something about today that they were looking forward to. He knew it wasn't easy to satisfy an average teenager's interest and many of them deemed the aspect of watching a historical cultural heritage like the Citadel _boring_.  
  
"As you've been informed, you are only allowed to take pictures from the outside and inside this entrance hall. The rest of the Cidatel usually isn't even open to visitors -except on special occasions- so I hope you are looking forward to this privilege of being guided through here," Ignis explained and, as intended, managed to get the students at least a little more excited about this.  
  
He didn't miss how Prompto's eyes lit up especially bright.  
  
The blond had more than once mentioned his interest in the Cidatel when Noct, Gladio or Ignis talked about something work-related. The advisor wasn't sure if the young one would be satisfied to come here without being able to take pictures since he knew that a great part of the photographer's interest in architecture or landscapes originated from his love to capture them with his camera.  
  
"As you've surely noticed by now, even this entrance hall has much to show already," Ignis began explaining casually, walking closer to the pillar-like pedestals that decorated the room, coming to a stop right next to Prompto.  
  
"These statues up there are all effigies of historically important people of Lucis. Do you recognize any of them?" He asked and looked across the crowd of students. Noctis seemed to roll his eyes, probably bored as he expected to stand through yet another common tale about his ancestors.  
  
A few students were whispering with each other, probably too shy to speak up, until a boy held up his hand, waiting to be allowed to answer.  
  
"Don't worry, you are not at school," Ignis answered with a smile, "No need to wait for permission, just speak up freely."  
  
The tactician had put many thoughts in today's plans. It was not only his intention to make today instructive for the young visitors but he also wished for them to have fun.  
  
"I think that one is king Robustus Lucis Caelum," the boy spoke up and pointed at the right statue.  
  
"That is correct. Does any of you know something about him? Again: No need to hold back, just speak your thoughts."  
  
"Wasn't he this super strong one?" A girl from Lestallum asked a little timidly.  
"Correct again," Ignis smiled at her.  
  
"They even call him the strongest king of Lucis ever," that little witch spoke up with her shrill voice, standing right next to Prompto's other side, just as Ignis had started to forget she was even here. "Records say he was even stronger than his shield and therefore didn't need him," she continued and Ignis felt sick about how much she sounded like a snobbish know-it-all. Hopefully, _he_ didn't come across like that to others.  
"And he even managed to defeat 100 enemies without receiving a single wound!"  
  
"I am glad you've learned something from my history lessons," a teacher chuckled and everyone was staring at that witch in awe - unfortunately, even Prompto.  
  
"That is true," Ignis stated before a little smirk appeared on his lips, "but did you know there had been a fight where he received a wound so fatal it even left a big scar on his back?"  
  
Now _that_ shut her up and earned him everyone's interest, even Noct's. Staying up late last week to study trivia fact's about the kings of Lucis might not have been in vain after all.  
"It often isn't mentioned in regular history books, but king Robustus was a real animal lover. His dog meant the world to him, he was his most precious companion and he even took a direct hit from the claws of a huge behemoth as he protected his precious four-legged friend."  
  
"So cool..." Prompto mumbled with sparkling eyes, his gaze fixated on the advisor's lips, following his every word. Ignis enjoyed being at the center of the blond's admiration even if it was directed at his narration more than at himself as a person.  
  
The other students had fancied his story as well and one of them cheerfully pointed at another statue.  
"That's king Cena, right?"  
  
"Yes," that witch dared to answer in his stead, obviously not pleased that the attention had shifted away from her to the advisor. She even walked over to Prompto's other side, standing right between him and Ignis now. "He was well loved by everyone because he was a humble guest who never complained about anything. They say he was very close to his people and even dined with the common people when they invited him."  
  
"Oooh..." the students reverberated in wonder, appreciating the modesty of king Cena - and probably that girl's knowledge as well.  
  
"You sure know a lot!" Prompto exclaimed excitedly and that witch smiled triumphantly with a sideways snort towards Ignis. _That little_... no, he wouldn't curse.  
  
"King Cena was truly known for being uncomplicated and his modesties. Only a few people knew of his allergy to citrus fruits," Ignis added and enjoyed it as the smile slowly fell from this woman's face.  
  
"He was so humble, he didn't want to burden anyone. The people had been so generous to invite him into their homes and shared what little food they had harvested and worked hard for, so he wouldn't complain to them. His shield has passed down the tales of his king complaining non-stop as soon as they had been behind closed doors because a rash once again had broken out. Their close companions even nicknamed him king Itchy," the advisor elaborated and the students began to laugh. Even Noctis was smiling as he watched Prompto laugh so hard tears formed in the corners of his eyes.  
  
"Guess even I can learn a few important new things here today," the history teacher joked and everyone started to laugh again.  
  
Everyone except for that little witch.  
She wasn't laughing.  
She was _fuming_.  
And Ignis was absolutely sure her anger was directed at him. He just wasn't sure why yet. Surely she couldn't simply be angry about him adding more facts to her explanation, could she? She still could impress her fellow students with her knowledge. Or was this about Prompto? Certainly, her mood seemed to change as soon as the blond shifted his attention away from her for merely a second. It wasn't new to him that she craved his attention, he just hadn't realized it was that bad. And here he had thought _he_ was the jealous one.  
  
Since Ignis didn't intend to be liked by her, but to make this a fun day for the other students and spend some time with Prompto, he continued as before whenever the students pointed out to other statues and pictures in the other halls of the Citadel. Throughout the whole morning, Ignis felt her animosity towards him growing every time he managed to impress Prompto or make him laugh. She also continued to bring in her wisdom as well and as much as he hated to admit it, she truly was knowledgable for her age. Her classmates and teachers expressed their fascination more than once, but she didn't seem to care about that. Her focus lay solely on Prompto and it didn't take long until she clung to his arm like a limpet once again, taking Ignis's chance away to place himself between them.  
  
She wasn't pleased when the blond sometimes whispered something to Noctis, both of them laughing afterwards, but she didn't strike the prince with the same animosity than him. Ignis was a little confused. Surely Noctis was a better friend to Prompto than himself, so she should be more jealous of the prince than of Ignis. But then again, Ignis had always had troubles to understand young ladies.  
  
Things got even worse during lunch when they had managed to get a table for four at the cafeteria. Noctis and Prompto were talking about casual things, but whenever the topic somehow came to anything Ignis had done, she always had to mention that she had done that as well - _just better_. She assured that she could sew better and faster as Noctis talked about that one time Ignis had fixed a rip in his royal attire just seconds before an important event; she mentioned working even two part-time jobs during middle school and taking care of the housework, when Prompto mentioned how impressed he was that Ignis managed to work at the Citadel, keep training and take care of Noct's every need; and when Prompto commented on the tastiness of the Citadel's food, causing Noctis to casually mention, that he preferred Ignis's cooking, she even had the gall to claim that _her_ cooking was even better.  
Much to his regret Prompto confirmed that he indeed had enjoyed her cooking when he visited her in Lestallum.  
Ignis felt sick. He didn't know how much of her stories were true and even though Prompto liked her cooking, he had never said he preferred it to Ignis's cooking, but the advisor felt downhearted anyway.  
  
Noctis had by now caught up to her misdeeds as well, visibly annoyed as he started browsing through his phone during the rest of their lunch, obviously giving up on having a normal conversation.  
  
Ignis really had taken Gladio's advice to heart and had tried to somehow flirt with Prompto today. Well, probably not flirt in Gladio's kind of way, but he had tried to spend time with the blond: Time they both enjoyed, and time he could use to get to know the boy better while he himself could leave a nice impression on him as well.  
  
But that witch had successfully managed to overshadow it all.  
  
After lunch, Ignis checked his phone and was relieved there at least were no new messages about even more extra work or Gladio having troubles with his tasks.  
  
"Hey Pompoooom," the shrill voice of _that_ woman pulled Ignis out of his thoughts even though she was talking unusually quiet for once, "Help me search the restrooms?"  
She made a pleading look with her huge eyes and clung to Prompto's arm, pressing her massive breasts against him. The advisor felt his eyebrow twitch. Why didn't she just ask someone who _knew_ where the restrooms were? This woman really didn't leave the blond's side for even one second.  
  
"Hey Crowe," Noctis called out to the brown haired Crownsguard at the next table, "Could you accompany her to the restroom? Thanks."  
"Sure thing, highness," Crowe replied dutifully but casually and got up immediately. "Follow me, lady."  
Amica shot a murderous glance at the prince before she put on a fake smile and obediently followed the older woman, for once leaving Prompto's side. Just as Ignis wanted to comment on Noct's fast reaction, the prince already spoke up again.  
  
"Specs, can you show Prompto your office? He wanted to see it," he said with a wink.  
"Huh?" Prompto sounded as confused as Ignis probably looked right now.  
"You should do that now that she is gone, it's... too personal to show to a complete stranger, right?" Noctis hurriedly continued, not looking convinced by his own words.  
Was he trying to get Ignis some time alone with Prompto away from this annoying woman? The advisor smiled and got up from his seat.  
  
"It is just a mere office, but I don't mind showing you around, if you are interested in it, Prompto," the tactician stated honestly.  
"Huh? Oh, uhm, yeah, sure," the blond answered, still sounding a little confused before he smiled at Noct and secretly mouthed a _'thank you'_ , which Ignis noticed anyway.  
Although he had no idea what that was for? Had Prompto really such a strong desire to see his office?  
  
The tactician shook his head and walked the blond to his office. No matter the reason, he was happy to spend some time away from the witch's clutches.  
  
When he opened the door, he was greeted with Gladio's exhausted face, which immediately lit up to a wide smirk as he saw Prompto accompanying Ignis.  
  
"Well hello there, what can I do for you two beautiful men?" Gladio said with his playful and flirty voice.  
  
"Charmer," the advisor snorted but didn't miss the way Prompto blushed and fidgeted a little. _Interesting_. Maybe the blond really had a weakness for receiving compliments and that was the reason he blushed around that woman all the time. It gave Ignis hope that it hadn't anything to do with Prompto actually liking _her_ more than necessary.  
  
"Noct informed me that Prompto was interested in seeing my office," Ignis explained and Gladio immediately seemed to catch on to something.  
"Oh, right, you are still on break until one o'clock, right? Perfect timing," the shield said after checking his watch, "I'll go to the cafeteria to grab a bite, you two stay here."  
"There isn't much to see here, we can accompany you in a minute," the tactician wanted to suggest, but Gladio immediately interrupted him.  
"Nope, take your time and then rest," the shield ordered his friend.  
"Prompto," the blond visibly flinched as Gladio suddenly addressed him, "make sure that Iggy rests until one o'clock after he has shown you around here!"  
  
Before anyone of them could retort something, the older man had already left the office.  
  
The sound of Gladio closing the door was the last sound heard inside the advisor's office. Afterwards, an almost uncomfortable silence filled the room. Ignis watched as the blond nervously looked around the office, clearly avoiding Ignis's gaze. Maybe Gladio had surprised the young one and he felt uncomfortable at the aspect of spending the rest of lunch break trapped here alone with Ignis.  
  
The advisor's worries disappeared as Prompto's eyes fell upon his desk and lit up. "Oh my gods, is that desk from this new special brand? The one with the slogan _'my room, my life'_?"  
"Ah, yes," Ignis answered.  
"That's so fancy!" Prompto said in awe.  
"This sideboard, the guest table, and the couch are from it as well," the tactician explained as he walked around the office, pointing at the different pieces of furniture.  
"No way!" Prompto exclaimed in disbelief and Ignis smiled at that reaction.  
"Is it that special?"  
"Of course! Their advertisements are literally everywhere at Insomnia right now and all their pieces of furniture look so aesthetic, I'm almost jealous of the guy who got to take these advertisement photos! Although the prices aren't aesthetic at all," the blond added with a sigh and the advisor chuckled.  
"I am lucky that the Crown paid for them."  
"May I touch them?" Prompto asked, his violet-blue eyes wide open, but before Ignis could answer, the blond blushed and looked away in embarrassment while he mumbled, "Sorry, that was a stupid question..."  
"I don't mind at all," Ignis stated, "make yourself at home. Maybe you want to bring your camera next time and take a few shots for your private collection? I'm quite sure if _you_ take them, they'll turn out even better than the advertisement photos."  
  
" _Next time_ ," Prompto repeated the advisor's words in disbelief, "You mean, I can come again? Like... to... visit you?"  
Ignis only now realized that his words had that kind of innuendo, but he didn't mind at all. If Prompto wanted to visit him, he could do that anytime. "Sure, whenever you want. Just tell me beforehand since I'm not always in the office."  
"Of course! I know, you have meetings and stuff! And I wouldn't want to bother you at work."  
"You've never bothered me, Prompto," Ignis answered fondly.  
"Really? Oh! Uhm, that's good!" The photographer answered happily before he went to touch the surface of the advisor's sideboard.  
  
"Oh! You would never guess that this is wood, when you feel it, the finishing is really smooth," the blond realized.  
"Not as smooth as these couch cushions of course," Ignis states as he said down on it. "Feel free to test it."  
  
The younger man walked over and after a short moment of hesitation he sat down beside Ignis.  
"Oh my gods... that's what sitting on clouds must feel like!"  
  
Ignis smiled happily as he watched Prompto's blissful expression. When the king had told him a few weeks ago, that he'd get new furniture Ignis had humbly declined at first. The ones he used might have been old but still usable enough. The king didn't take no for an answer, though, and by now Ignis was glad about that. If these new pieces of furniture made Prompto smile they were completely worth it.  
  
The sound of Prompto's phone pulled him out of his thoughts.  
"Amica messaged me and asked when I'll be back," the blond explained while looking at his phone.  
"Can't she stand being without you for even half an hour?" Ignis snorted on reflex and regretted it immediately. It was outside his province to judge her.  
"She mentioned once that she doesn't like being alone, but Noct and her classmates are at the cafeteria, so she should be fine. I'll message her we'll be back after the break. After all, Gladio told me to make sure, that you rest a little!"  
"You don't have to listen to him, we can go back to the others if you want to," the advisor humbly suggested, even though he wished nothing more than to stay here with the blond forever.  
  
"Nope! We'll take a real break now, without the noise of the cafeteria," Prompto answered, almost sounding a little stubborn.  
"Okay," Ignis gave in and leaned back against the soft backrest of the couch.  
  
The advisor shifted a little, trying to sit comfortably, but brought a hand to his stiff neck. He had spent too much time with deskwork lately.  
  
"Does your neck hurt?" Prompto asked and got up to walk around the couch.  
"I could give you a massage," the blond added as he now stood behind Ignis.  
"You don't have- Oh! ... That feels divine," the advisor's protest got cut off as the photographer started to knead his shoulders with just the right amount of pressure.  
  
"Hehe, that's good," Prompto answered happily, "I've always wanted to do that for you."  
"You did?" Ignis asked in wonder, as he felt the tension slowly leaving his body under the swift work of Prompto's fingers.  
  
"Oh, I, uhm, yeah," the younger man stuttered and Ignis felt a short hesitation in his movements, "I mean, you always do so much for everyone - even for me. I thought it would be nice to be able to do something for you in return."  
  
Ignis moaned quietly and felt a blush creeping up his cheeks. He didn't remember the last time he had been that happy. It was a really nice gesture of Prompto and the tingling feelings in his stomach hoped that the blond wouldn't do that for just anyone, but he did it for _him_.  
"That's very considerate of you. You have my gratitude."  
"You're welcome! Just... tell me if you ever are in need of a little massage again," Prompto offered while his hands moved from the tactician's shoulders up to his neck.  
  
Ignis inhaled sharply and hold his breath as Prompto's fingers touched his sensitive neck. He would definitely remember this feeling the next time he pleasured himself...  
"You okay? Did I push too hard?" Prompto asked and Ignis felt himself stiffen once more as if he had been caught having dirty thoughts.  
"Oh, no, on the contrary," he said, hoping his voice didn't sound as raw as it felt, "You are quite skilled. I was wondering if you were used to giving massages?"  
"Ah, I might have practiced a bit," Prompto admitted and continued to work the tension out of Ignis's neck.  
"You did?" Ignis asked, trying his best to hide his unnecessary jealousy.  
  
"Uhm, yeah. As I said, I wondered, what I could do for you and since I wasn't sure what to do, I asked Noct and Gladio for advice."  
"I didn't know about that."  
"I've told them to keep it a secret! Gladio said a massage would be perfect because you are often tense from overworking. So he taught me how it's done and Noctis was my practice victim. I wasn't very good at first, you can ask him," the blond chuckled to hide his embarrassment. "I might have hurt or bored him a few times until I knew how to use the right amount of pressure."  
  
Ignis smiled. At first, he had been disappointed that the idea wasn't Prompto's alone and someone else had experienced the photographer's massage skills, but somehow he never minded if Noctis or Gladio were involved. On the contrary - he appreciated that each and every one of them had invested their time to help him out. He really was blessed to have such good friends.  
  
He enjoyed the rest of the massage in silence until he felt Prompto's fingers leaving him.  
"I guess, we have to head back," the blond said, sounding as disappointed as Ignis felt.  
The advisor reluctantly opened his eyes and checked the time on his phone: they really had to get going if they wanted to be on time.  
  
"You are right... let me thank you again, that really was pleasant."  
  
"Glad you liked it! I'll do it again anytime!"  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've replayed the last chapter of the FFXV Royal Edition for some inspiration about Insomnia and the Citadel before I wrote this chapter.  
> Here are pictures of the entrance hall of the Citadel and the mentioned furniture commercial:  
>   
> 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, the next chapter!
> 
> Thanks at [Belli](http://archiveofourown.org/users/SunshineBabyCrow) for beta-reading!

Ignis and Prompto headed back to the cafeteria where they were awaited by a fuming witch and a very annoyed prince with his shield in tow. Ignis was grateful that Noct had arranged for some alone time between Prompto and him, but he still felt sorry that his charge, therefore, had to endure the presence of this unbearable creature. Gladio had finished his lunch by now and excused himself back to the office as Ignis called together the students and accompanying teachers before leading them to the training grounds.

When they arrived at their destination, they were greeted by no one less than Cor the Immortal. The Marshall was a living legend not only inside the walls of Insomnia but through the outer regions of Lucis as well.

The students stood there, some staring at him in awe, others whispering in disbelief. "That's really _him_."  
Even the annoying woman seemed to be impressed for once and kept her ever running mouth shut.

Cor showed them around the training grounds shouting at recruits from time to time, pointing out where they were slacking off. They saw Crowe training close combat with Nyx; the male elegantly avoided her attack, pulled her leg away with a swift motion of his own and successfully downed his opponent, a wide smirk upon his lips the whole time. Looking up, the black-haired male winked at Ignis for the second time today, which the advisor only answered with a raised eyebrow.

Nyx _always_ winked at him. The man must have been more of a flirt than Gladio - and that meant something.  
What Ignis wasn't used to, was that Nyx looked surprised for a short moment before he wiggled his eyebrows and smirked again, but his attention wasn't on the advisor anymore. Ignis followed his gaze and spotted a very moody prince, who outright glared at the older glaive. Was Noct angry that Nyx had flirted with Ignis? The prince didn't seem bothered by it this morning, but maybe he had still been too sleepy to even notice the short moment. Noctis should know the glaive's nature by now and that this meant nothing - although Gladio always warned him to be careful around Nyx, saying something about a wolf in sheep's clothing.  
The advisor paid the other male no more attention as they continued their walk around the facilities until they arrived at their destination for the rest of the afternoon.

The students were visibly confused as they entered the hall with the training dartboards. Cor explained shortly, but efficiently, how accurate throwing skills were of the utmost importance for glaives since they needed to throw weapons at their desired warp destination or simply used throwing daggers in regular battles.

"Show them, Scientia," Cor suddenly commanded and pointed at the target for daggers, that was at the end of the hall.  
"Of course, sir," the tactician answered diligently and summoned both of his daggers at once. He stepped to the marked line, flipped the daggers in his hand to get a feeling for their weight, even though he knew it by heart after so many hours spent training with them and easily threw them at the target, hitting the bulls-eye.

The students all cheered enthusiastically but Prompto's whispered " _So cool..._ " meant more to him than all their recognition combined.

He didn't have much time to enjoy the dreamy and impressed expression on the photographer's face because Cor continued his explanation as he went over to the dart targets. "Playing darts is a good way to _playfully_ practice for beginners."

Ignis had to suppress a chuckle as someone as strict and stern as the Immortal almost spat out the word _playfully_. Only when he heard a short snicker from the other side of the hall he realized that Nyx and Crowe had joined them by now. They were supposed to help out instructing the students.

"You, blond boy!" Cor suddenly called out to Prompto, who visibly paled as all the attention fell on him.  
"Try throwing a dart," he ordered and handed him a dart. Prompto gulped and carefully took the dart into his hands as he began walking up to the marked line, but his body was way too stiff and it almost looked as if he was shaking from nervousness. Noctis wanted to say something, probably protesting somehow to save his friend from a possible humiliation, Cor, however was faster.  
"Scientia, correct the boy's stance. Teach him how it's done."

Prompto looked back at Ignis with helpless and pleading eyes.  
"Of course," the advisor answered, mildly confused as he watched the Immortal smirk for a second before his face took on its usual stoic expression again. Had Ignis only imagined that?

He walked over to the blond and came to a stop right next to him.  
"The stance is of the utmost importance when throwing darts," he started to explain, "When you are throwing with your right hand, you step forth with your right foot as well."  
While explaining, he took the right stance next to Prompto to properly show him, but the blond was still too nervous to copy his pose.  
"You have to turn your body a little more, watch the target."  
"L-like this?" Prompto asked as his gaze shifted between the tactician and the target, causing him to fidget around too much.  
"Not exactly," the advisor mumbled slowly and suddenly remembered Gladio's words from this morning. Was this an opportunity to make some body contact?

A little hesitantly, he stepped closer until his body was right behind the younger one's.  
"Let me show you." Mumbling those words he laid his left hand on Prompto's hips to turn them the right way, while he carefully placed his right hand beneath Prompto's right forearm, lifting it up a little more.

"You can lean forward a little, but both of your feet have to stay on the ground all the time," he explained as if on autopilot- meanwhile his thoughts were going crazy inside his head. This was the first time ever he'd been so close to Prompto. He could even catch whiffs of Prompto's shampoo, a soft nuance of vanilla grazing his nose as he inhaled deeply - an unsuccessful try to calm his own nerves.

Prompto's body had gone stiff at the first touch, but now it felt like he relaxed more and even leaned back on Ignis.  
"Focus your eyes on the target and remember that the trajectory of the dart isn't a, oh!" As the advisor felt the soft, round cheeks of Prompto's butt press back against his front, he stuttered at his current explanation and cleared his throat. "It isn't a straight line, but a curve. A parabolic curve," he continued and gulped. A _curve_ , just like Prompto's well shaped curvy butt cheeks.  
"You have probably learned that in your math or physics lessons already," he added to get his own thought back on the right track.

"There is no perfect way to hold the dart itself, just hold it as you would hold a pencil, everyone has their distinctive way of doing that."  
Ignis proceeded his instructions, desperately fighting his urge to grab other things.  
"Try to keep your body still, focus on your target and gain a little momentum with your arm before you throw," the tactician explained as he reluctantly stepped back from Prompto's body.

Prompto's face was still red up to his ears, probably due to the embarrassment of being in the center of all attention, but otherwise, he had visibly calmed down. There was a concentrated expression on his face, his eyes focused on the target ahead, his body stance perfectly aligned.

The blond threw the dart at the target and Ignis followed its trajectory until it straightly hit a complete bulls-eye. While Prompto still blinded in disbelief the others already cheered and complimented his success. Noct patted his best friend on the shoulder.

When the realization finally settled in, Prompto looked over to Ignis, his smile brighter than the sun. The one addressed with that beaming grin felt the corners of his own mouth going up as well. All of it- the smiles, cheerfulness, and happiness of the blond boy had always been contagious.

Alas, the dreamlike moment burst like a soap bubble as soon as that hag clung to Prompto's arm, her shrill voice resonating through the training hall.  
"Pooooompom! That was sooooo awesome! You are the best! I want to try it too! Teach me how it's done."  
To underline her demand she pressed herself even closer against the young boy. Noctis failed to keep his poker face and regarded her with an annoyed and disapproving look. Ignis really had to have a talk with his charge. However much he despised this woman himself it just wasn't appropriate for him or his prince to let that feeling show upon their faces. Especially in the presence of others.

"Oh, uhm, thanks, but I'm not good enough to teach you, Amica," Prompto answered and for once Ignis was glad for the young man's humbleness.  
"Iggy can teach you, though." That suggestion forced Ignis to focus all his willpower on maintaining his own poker face now. He had no intention to teach that woman _anything_ , but technically he was at work right now and he was a professional. Furthermore, he didn't want to deny Prompto a request.

"Of course, I can show you," the tactician answered and stepped up to the marked line again. He wasn't even surprised anymore when the girl shot him a gaze full of venom and spite before she turned back to the photographer pouting. "But Pompoooom!"

"Don't worry, he is the best teacher ever!"  
Prompto's reassuring words to her and Ignis feel fortunate to receive his praise, although he didn't miss the short snort coming from Cor. It sparked another thought of wonder how much Cor knew about his feelings for Prompto. The Immortal did seem like a cold person at first glance, who felt no empathy, but he paid special attention to each and everyone he worked with and often knew more than he let on. Circulating rumors about him being able to read one's mind weren't based on nothing after all. Maybe Noctis really wasn't the only one who had to work on his poker face.

"Oookay..." the witch finally gave in, but her eyes tried to burn Ignis alive. He himself still wasn't sure what he had done to earn her ever-growing animosity today -after all, she couldn't truly regard him as a rival for Prompto's affection, could she?- but he couldn't deny that it was reciprocated.

Being the professional he was, he kept his face neutral and handed her a dart. She took it reluctantly and stood at the marked line.  
"Take a step back with your left foot and leave your right foot at the marked line," he diligently explained, standing close to conduct her but still keeping enough distance as to not touch her.  
"Like this?" She asked as she stepped back but rotated her whole body by 90°, looking to the side now.  
"Yeah, but focus on the target."  
His voice was calm while she, once again, stepped back, putting both feet on the marked line. Ignis felt his eyelid twitch shortly. Was she doing that on purpose?  
"How? Show me!" She demanded and Ignis stepped closer, standing beside her in the right throwing pose, his hand held up, ready to throw an invisible, nonexistent dart. "Like this."  
"Eeeh?"  
"Just take your left foot back, but keep looking at the target," he patiently instructed once more.

The witch turned around way too far again and took a wide step to the side, resulting in her running into Ignis. His hand collided with her chest and she immediately _screamed_ , stepping back a few feet. "He touched my boobs!"

"My apologies," Ignis said on reflex, "that wasn't my intention."

"Liar, you molester!" Her shrill voice already punishment enough aside from accusing him of such a heinous act, she added insult to injury, hiding behind a classmate ready to show everyone her eyes watering up with what had to be _fake_ tears.

The advisor couldn't believe the scene he was witnessing. That... _witch_! All the while students began to whisper, some even warily watching his movements, until Nyx clapped his hands to get their attention. "Now, now, calm down. Someone as prim and proper as Ignis would never lay his hands on anyone, who doesn't want it."

"The _proper_ ones are always the worst closet perverts!" With the audacity to scream again, that little girl wouldn't stop to find accuses. Ignis bit his lip and stood just as before, his hand still held up only to mimic the dart throwing pose and not to touch the boobs of this little demon. _By Ifrit's hellfire_ , he wasn't even interested in women much less in boobs!

Caught up in the situation, Prompto looked more than lost. His gaze switching between the advisor and his ex-girlfriend, all the while he held unto Noct's arm, visibly keeping the prince from running over to that witch in a fit of rage. Ignis knew that look on his charge's face and even if he felt honored that Noct was ready to fight for his sake, it wouldn't do any good if the prince hit and hurt a civilian.

"He shouldn't even be allowed to be near any kind of student!" That annoying woman continued to spit out her venom, apparently still not satisfied with the tantrum she had already thrown.  
Out of the corner of his eye, Ignis saw Noct preparing to warp just as Cor loudly smashed his fist into the wall, the blameless concrete crumbling from it.

"Silence!!"

Everyone went quiet at once and stared at the Immortal, fear apparent on the now pale faces of many students.

"Altius, take this little girl to the cafeteria and get her a cake. Maybe a little sugar will help to get that tiny brain of hers working again. We don't need anyone training here who is neither capable of standing still enough to throw a dart nor in the possession of common sense."

"Yes, sir," Crowe answered dutifully and stepped forward to that unbelievable witch. One of the female teachers from Lestallum stepped up as well. "Come now, Amica. Let's take a little break."

The hag had stopped crying and was now burning with rage as she glared daggers at Ignis. If looks could kill, he would have been in the need of quite a few Phoenix Downs today already.

Finally, all three women left the training hall and the teacher stopped in the doorway shortly to bow. "I apologize for the commotion."

Students who only seconds ago had regarded Ignis with wary and disgusted looks were now giggling and tattling, apparently suddenly happy about the telling-off that woman had received. Even though they had taken her side a few moments before. Teenagers were so easily manipulated and always looking for something to gossip about. It was sad.

"Is it funny to laugh about your own comrades?" Cor shouted at no one in particular, but everyone twitched and shut up at once.

"There is always something to learn from mistakes - whether they are your own mistakes or those made by others. So stop laughing and look at yourselves. This might even help you to avoid making the same mistake yourself. Don't they teach you that kind of stuff at school anymore?" The Immortal directed his last question at the teachers, who were all too intimidated to even answer and instead just bowed and apologized.

The Marshall bristled with anger, clearly not in the mood for any more of this.  
"Ulric, Scientia, teach them how it's done," Cor instructed before he looked over the students one last time, "have fun, I'll check up on you from time to time."

With these last words, sounding almost like a threat, the Immortal left the training hall and everyone was visibly relieved about his absence for now. Whispers ranged from " _He is so scary!_ " to " _He is so cool!_ ", but soon the students all formed groups, picked up some darts and started throwing them. The training hall had 10 targets, so the students didn't have to wait too long until it was their turn. Nyx and Ignis went from group to group and gave them tips on how to improve their throwing skills. The latter even more aware of keeping a proper distance than usual. One unnecessary scandal had been enough for today.

The students had fun and soon a healthy competition developed. Everyone tried to improve their skills even more, to be better than their friends, calling out to Ignis and Nyx for advice.

It didn't take long until the teachers got interested as well and Ignis was just instructing one of them when it was Prompto's turn to throw his darts in the group next to Ignis. From his current position, the advisor had a good look at the blond and immediately felt a fluttering in his stomach as he remembered how close he had been to him just minutes ago.

Prompto threw his first dart and barely hit the edge of the target.  
"Aaaah, come on," the blond exclaimed with a pout, which was totally adorable, "What have I done wrong?"

Ignis wanted to speak up, but Nyx beat him to it and stepped up right behind the blond, laying both of his hands on Prompto's hips.  
"You are too cramped," the older man murmured in Prompto's ear with a voice so seductive it should be forbidden. The advisor watched the young photographer shudder and his cheeks turning red.

Probably the same intensity of red that Ignis just saw before his inner eye. Was the glaive serious?! After everything that had happened just now, he really dared to flirt with a student? And of all the students available here, it had to be Prompto? 

"Hands off," Noctis ordered in his rarely used serious voice that spoke of nothing but royalty and superiority as he placed his own hands on Prompto's hips instead and shoved Nyx away with his own.

The older male blinked at him in confusion and Prompto stuttered something incoherently.  
"That was the second time today, your highness," Nyx answered, his voice provocatively purring the title, staring into his prince's eyes without fear. Was he talking about earlier when Nyx had thrown Ignis flirty gazes until Noctis had glared at him?  
"And you don't want to experience what happens the third time," Noct answered without hesitation causing Ignis to inhale sharply. It wasn't often to see such determination in his charge, but the advisor couldn't say that he disliked it.

"Okay, okay," Nyx sighed after a short staring contest, holding up his hands in defeat, "I guess Gladio's protectiveness must have rubbed off on you."  
"Maybe... his _feelings_ have rubbed off on me, yeah," Noctis mumbled as if realizing something, suddenly lowering his gaze as his cheeks turned pink. Nyx frowned shortly, but left it at that and went on to the next group.

"Mister Scientia?" The teacher, he was supposed to be instructing right now, called out to him for probably not the first time.  
"My apologies," he answered politely and reluctantly turned his gaze away from Prompto and Noctis. Studying the posture of the teacher when he, instead, would have liked to study Prompto's posture, giving her instructions on how to improve.

Even though he diligently instructed her, his thoughts were still circling around what had just happened.

When Nyx had touched Prompto a similar kind of jealousy kept creeping up. Like all those times this annoying woman had clung to him; poisonous, bubbling, brooding. To his surprise it hadn't bothered him when Noct had done the same. On the contrary, he had been happy that his prince had fought off the flirty glaive. Maybe this was what Gladio always, and even Noct nowadays, talked about; that he didn't mind anything if it was between the four of them.  

When Ignis thought back to it, he had also never liked it when some of the maids giggled about how handsome the prince had gotten. He knew that they would never make a move on him, still it had always bothered him. Until now he had thought that was only due to his instinct to protect his charge, but maybe there had been more to it? When Prompto had first shown up, he had been very skeptical and wary as well, but he soon fell in love with the enthusiastic and happy nature of Prompto's character, appreciating him being there more frequently. And Gladio... well, the shield had just always been there. In his teenage days, when the advisor was coming to terms with his own sexuality, he had quite a few fantasies and wet dreams about his friends; however, those days, he always blamed teenage hormones for that. Gladio was way out of his league anyway.

Ignis shook his head. What was he even thinking about? As he watched Noctis instruct Prompto, standing close to him and touching him more often than not, he wondered if these two had always blushed that much when they were together. Thinking back to them playing videogames, fighting out tickle wars or just lazing around laying on top of each other on the couch, he couldn't remember them ever being so wary about each other's attention. Had something changed between them? Ignis smiled. Although he wanted to be the one getting close to Prompto, it felt nice to watch.

His thoughts and feelings were really all over the place lately.

And he was blaming Gladio for it.

The shield was making too many comments about his supposed feelings for all of them and the fact that polyamorous relationships weren't only possible in fairy tales or fiction.

For now though, Ignis laid his focus on the cute blond man just now awaiting his next turn to throw darts while he watched in awe how Noctis easily hit the bulls-eye with his three throws.

The biggest obstacle right now was that witch and the newfound level of animosity she had shown today. The advisor knew for sure that this woman hated him and that she was effectively trying to let him feel the consequences of this hatred as well.

What brightened his mood was the fact that Prompto might have indeed been blushing when she flirted with him, but maybe Noctis and Gladio had been right: The blond did blush whenever someone complimented him or got close to him. So maybe that meant he wasn't interested in her, instead his body only showed signs of him being flattered by her advances. Ignis still stood a chance.

After a long session of playing darts, everyone got together in the cafeteria for some coffee and cake. Nyx had offered to accompany the guests and see them off afterwards, so the advisor accepted his help, reluctantly getting back to his office. He would have preferred to stay with Prompto and Noctis instead of doing work, but on the other hand, he really wasn't in the mood to see that drama queen again today.

When he entered his office Gladio looked more exhausted than after a whole day of training. Ignis smiled. The shield really wasn't cut out for deskwork. This fact made the advisor even more thankful that Gladio had offered to help him out today.

"Thank you for your efforts, Gladiolus. I'm in debt to you now," the tactician answered as he looked over the finished papers.  
"Just go on a date with me once and we are even," was the cheeky answer he received from the shield with a wink and his trademark smirk.  
"Alright." Amused over how Gladio's smirk faltered turning into staring and intense blinking. So realization finally sunk in then.  
"You didn't just accept, did you?" The shield asked in disbelief.  
"Didn't expect, that I would, did you?" Ignis chuckled and wasn't even sure himself what had overcome him. Unlike lately, he had always regarded his best friend's advances as playful jokes. As time went on though, he started to believe in them more. And he was the last one daring not to take a friend's feelings seriously. If Gladio wanted a date with him and Noct was fine with that, why shouldn't they try this once? Although a date with Prompto would have suited him even better. Maybe they could take the blond and their prince with them on the date? Ignis had to admit that he liked the idea, but he had no time for utopian fantasies right now.  
"Let's discuss the details at a later time."  
"Sure..." Gladio answered still confused about Ignis's change of mind.

"Are you finished with these?" Ignis asked as he flipped through another pile of papers.  
"Yeah, that's finished. Those over here need to be rechecked by you, and these are still undone," the shield explained, pointing out to the different sheets and piles of paper.

"Alright, thank you again. I'll take over now," the advisor said.  
"Iggy," Gladio groaned, "Tell me how your day was first."

Knowing how insistent his best friend could get, Ignis decided to give in to his wish and told him about today's events shortly. He mentioned Nyx's usual advances at him and even at Prompto, as well as Noct's interference, although he left out how he himself thought and felt about that. When he mentioned the drama that witch had caused, Gladio lost it.

"I can't believe she pulled such bullshit!"  
"Language, Gladiolus."  
The shield rolled his eyes being reprimanded. "I hope someone shut her up eventually?!"  
"Don't worry, the Marshall did."  
"Cor himself?" Gladio was surprised to hear that. "If it were anyone else I'd feel sorry for them, but she really deserved that."  
"I'm afraid I have to agree. It was liberating when he had her expelled from the training room," the tactician admitted and Gladio laughed mischievously.

Over the volume of Gladio's laugh, Ignis almost missed the knocking at his office door. He quickly slapped the shield's shoulder to get his attention and shush him. "Come in."

As no one less than king Regis himself entered his office, Ignis stood up even straighter and hit Gladio's shoulder again, sending him a reprimanding look as the shield still casually slouched in his office chair.  
"Your Majesty! You could have called me," the advisor offered at once.  
"At ease, Ignis, please. Gladiolus," the king greeted him with a nod, either not minding his slouched posture or not letting it show, "I wanted to take a little walk anyway, that's why I decided to come over myself. Are you managing your workload?"  
"Of course." Never would the tactician not assure his majesty of that.  
The king looked at Gladio, an eyebrow raised in question.  
"I've finished what I could," the shield simply stated with a shrug.  
"And I'll work on the remaining papers now, don't worry about it," the tactician explained.

"Alright, thank you both for your hard work. Please don't overwork yourselves," the king mentioned just as the office door was burst open.

"Ignis!" Noctis shouted as he stormed into the room, looking agitated but not like in immediate danger.  
"What did I tell you about knocking?" Ignis sighed.  
The prince ignored his advisor's comment and blinked as he noticed his father, "Oh, hi dad!"  
"Hello son," Regis answered with an amused smile.

"Ignis," Noctis said, turning his attention back to his advisor, "two of the parents who wanted to help with the barbeque tomorrow got really sick! Can you help out instead?"  
"Should I be worried that you are asking Ignis even though your _parent_ is standing right here, son?" Regis asked, his eyebrows furrowed.  
"It's not like you have time anyway, do you?" Noctis retorted.  
"My apologies," Regis mumbled, looking down with regret.  
"It's alright," the prince forced himself to answer, "I'm used to it."

Ignis knew how strained the relationship between the two royals was. They both wanted to spend more time together, yet duties seldom let them. Not wanting the other to feel bad about it, they both did their best to hide their disappointment about how little family-time they were granted.  
"They won't let us students do a barbeque by ourselves," Noctis explained further, "something about safety regulations."

"I could help out as well," Gladio suggested.  
"You can't grill cup noodles. And I trust Iggy more when it comes to anything cooking related," Noctis teased his boyfriend.  
"Hey!"  
"Besides, I want Prom to taste Iggy's grilling skills," the prince added, making his two companions sigh and smile in defeat.

Regis watched them chuckling and pulled up an eyebrow, a knowing smirk on his face. "Prompto is very important to you all, isn't he?"  
Ignis wanted to reply something, but he couldn't find the right words.  
"Yeah," Noctis admitted quietly before his voice got more sincere, his gaze directly meeting his father's eyes, "Is that a problem?"  
"Not at all, son," the king reassured, "I merely wish for your happiness - whatever it may take."

Ignis wasn't sure where this topic was going and somehow he was afraid to find out, so he changed the conversation back to the issue at hand. "I will help out, Noct. What exactly do they need?"  
"Oh, uhm, just bring some potato salad and meat to grill. And... a brazier, I guess."  
"So I have to take care of _everything_ ," the advisor stated, already accepting his fate and starting to make his mental shopping list.  
"Yeah, sorry about that," Noctis apologized.

The king frowned as his phone rang, immediately rejecting the call instead of taking it. "My apologies, I guess it's time for me to leave. I wish you lots of fun for the rest of the week, son. A student exchange is a rarity, so enjoy it!"  
"I will, thanks dad," the prince answered with a smile.  
"And please all watch out, that Ignis doesn't overwork himself," Regis said as he was already leaving the room.  
"Please don't concern yourself with me, your majesty!" Ignis answered anyway and bit his lip. The king had enough to worry about even without worrying about the advisor's well-being.

"Oh, something else," Noctis suddenly mentioned, "Amica and Prom are going to the cinema tonight. It was her idea, but Prom asked me to come along. She wasn't happy about that, but I don't care."  
"When do you leave?" Gladio accompanied his question with a good long sigh.  
"As soon as possible I guess. They wanted to grab a bite at the Crow's Nest beforehand."  
Ignis grimaced at the mention of the cheap fast food restaurant. The appeal of excessively greasy fries and burgers never disclosed itself to him, let alone what everyone loved about them.

"Alright, let's go," Gladio said and stood up from the office chair, "What about you Igs?"  
The advisor pulled up an eyebrow and wordlessly pointed at the pile of unfinished papers.  
"Oh come on, just do that tomorrow."  
"In case you have missed it, tomorrow I have to go groceries shopping, make a salad, marinate some steaks and go grilling in the late afternoon," the tactician listed and Noctis visibly flinched.  
"Sorry, Specs. If it's too much, you don't have-" Noctis gave in, guilt clearly visible in his expression.  
"None of that, Noct," the advisor interrupted his charge with a fond smile, "I appreciate your concern, but it _is_ alright. I'm sure it's gonna be worth the effort and we'll have a nice barbeque tomorrow."  
"Okay. Thanks," Noctis said with a smile and went around the desk to give Ignis a long hug. The tactician was caught off guard by that movement but soon returned the gesture, his arms wrapping around Noct's waist. It wasn't often that his prince showed affection to such a degree.

Without thinking too much about it, Ignis leaned back slightly to fondly press a kiss upon the prince's forehead, his nose brushing the soft bangs of dark hair in the process. Noctis immediately released the hug, his face burning red and his eyes flicking around nervously.  
"I, uhm, don't wanna keep Prom waiting, bye," the young man stuttered and was out of the office not more than a second later.

Ignis still stood where Noct had left him and blinked at the closed office door. He needed a few moments to process what had just happened, although he _couldn't_ process what had just happened. "What...?"

"You two are so cute," Gladio said with his flirty voice, grinning even wider than usual.  
"What? I didn't- that was just, I- he," Ignis unsuccessfully fished for the correct words, feeling his cheeks warm up.  
"Relax, Iggy. It's alright," the shield chuckled and walked to the advisor, placing a kiss on his cheek, "It's cute how flustered and clueless you both are."  
"Huh??" Ignis couldn't believe such an unintelligent sound escaped his lips, but he couldn't believe what was happening right now either as his face burned up even more.  
"Don't work until too late! I'll text you to keep you updated about tonight," Gladio said before he left the office as well, leaving Ignis alone with his thoughts and feelings.

In one awkward motion that was more falling than sitting down, the advisor slumped into his chair, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by _everything_.

What was happening lately? He had never been that... _aware_ of his friends before - except for his first years of puberty maybe, but that had solely been his hormones' fault. Gladio had always been attractive and a good, reliable friend, still, as of late the advisor wondered where the exact borders between friendship, attraction, and love were. His feelings for Gladio were different than his feelings for Prompto.

He felt the need to care for Prompto, make him happy, worship him, help him build up his self-confidence. He was attracted to his smiles, his youthful carefreeness yet grown-up sense of responsibility, the way his eyes lit up whenever he talked about something he enjoyed or every time he was immersed in his photography.

Whereas Gladio might seem unreliable and careless but was indeed always thinking about those dear to him. If Ignis was the one always taking care of everything and everyone, the shield was the one who looked after Ignis in return. And the tactician felt blessed by that fact. It made his heart beat faster when he remembered all the times Gladio had been there to help him no matter the circumstances. Ignis loved how his friend was tall, strong and could intimidate anyone with his amazing physique but deep down he was a cute dork, who loved to eat cup noodles, let his sister braid his hair with flowers and gave the best hugs. He always felt safe with Gladio by his side.

And Noctis...  
The prince had always been a part of the tactician's life. In the beginning, he was told to be his advisor, his caretaker, his friend, his brother. He had struggled to fulfill all his roles, had troubles which role to take in which situation, when to give rational advice, when to show emotional support and when to simply physically be there for his prince. Over the years the lines had blurred and Ignis often wasn't sure what role he wanted to take - or how he wanted Noctis to see him. He liked to care about Noctis in every way, he was happy whenever the prince relied on him, felt accomplished when something simple like a home-cooked meal managed to coax a little yet beautiful smile upon Noct's face.  
Was it selfish that he wanted the prince to rely on him even more? To take the burdens from his friend who suffered from the expectations everyone had from the royal despite his young age. It would be a lie if he said that he never thought about adding another layer to their relationship, one of even deeper love - emotionally and physically, but he had always denied these thoughts from building up, feeling like he would break an unspoken taboo if he indulged in them any further.

Ignis took off his glasses and massaged his temples. He wasn't sure how he felt about Gladio or Noctis. Nor was he certain about how he wanted to feel, how he was _allowed_ to feel. It had taken him enough trouble to accept his feelings for Prompto, three years younger and his prince's best friend. If he messed this up in any way, it might even hurt the photographer's friendship with the prince and that was the last thing he wanted to do. It was a blessing that Noctis had finally found a friend his own age who cared about him as a person and not only about the fact that he was of royal blood.

Deciding that any more thinking about his feelings would lead him nowhere Ignis picked up the papers on his desk and started to do his work. He needed to get enough done today so that he could leave early tomorrow and help out with the barbeque.

Fortunately, he was able to concentrate better than yesterday morning and had managed to finish every urgent report before midnight. From time to time he had checked his phone, for messages from Noct and Gladio keeping him updated about their evening. During their visit to the Crow's Nest, Noctis had somehow managed to snatch the seat besides Prompto, forcing that witch to take the seat on the opposite side of the table next to Gladio. The prince had texted him more than once that she was glaring daggers at him. He also mentioned that while he was annoyed by it in the beginning, he soon began to mischievously enjoy it. Ignis wasn't used to his prince expressing that much spitefulness and he hoped his charge wouldn't provoke this unpredictable snake too much. It had been more than enough that Ignis had fallen into her trap today at today's darts training, he didn't need the prince of Lucis to get caught up in a scandal. There was also the nagging thought of not knowing if it was a good or bad sign that her anger had shifted focus from solely Ignis to the prince as well.

Afterwards, they had gone to watch an extra long horror movie. Apparently, it had been her wish and she had insisted to sit next to Prompto this time because Noct had already sat beside him during _dinner_ \- if you even could call this fast food dinner. As far as Ignis knew Prompto wasn't a fan of horror movies, but he was just glad she hadn't insisted on watching some love story.

Ignis arrived at home around midnight, took a quick shower and got ready for bed. It was then that his phone lit up with a text from Gladio.

Gladio:  
_It's late, guess you're already asleep. Everyone got home safely and Noct's sleeping over at my place. Talk to you tomorrow._

Ignis:  
_Good evening. I'm still awake. If it isn't too much trouble, you can fill me in right now instead of tomorrow. But don't force yourself to stay awake because of me._

It was only a few moments later that the advisor's phone rang and he picked it up.

"Good evening, Gladio."  
"Please don't tell me, you are still at work."  
"No, I'm at home, getting ready for bed," the tactician answered leaving out the fact that he had still been at work merely half an hour ago.  
"Good. Noct's already passed out. He has slept through half of the movie and drooled unto my shoulder. I would have been angry if he weren't that adorable." The shield chuckled and Ignis smiled as well.  
"Must have been a really interesting movie if he slept through half of it."  
"It wasn't that bad actually, not just cheap jump-scares, but they build up a really creepy atmosphere as well. Was a little brutal and gory from time to time, but I've seen worse," the shield explained and the advisor heard him walking around his room in the background until the shield finally settled down to bed.

"... You didn't smuggle the boys into an 18+ movie, did you?"  
"No, it was 16+. Though I don't get why. Should have been 18+ in my opinion. Blondie was scared shit, really." Gladio was talking quieter now as to not wake up Noct laying next to him. It was that kind of consideration that he loved about Gladio.  
"So I remembered correctly that he doesn't fancy horror movies."  
"Nope, he doesn't. Almost hurt how much he flinched every time he got spooked. He even bit his lip to stop himself from screaming."  
"That's... not nice to hear."  
"I asked him a few times if he wanted to leave early, but he denied. Well, at least he had asked to sit next to me. Amica was clinging to his arm the whole time, but he just outright ignored her and clung to me instead. In the beginning, he was too shy to accept my offer to hold hands, but he soon gave in. The kid has a much stronger grip than you think, Iggy. It's a miracle he didn't crush my delicate fingers!" Gladio finished his narration theatrically and Ignis snorted.  
"I'm sure you'll survive it. And I'm glad that you've been there to support him."  
"You're glad or you're jealous?" Gladio asked teasingly and the tactician had to think about his answer for a short moment.  
"Maybe both? But more glad than jealous," he said, his voice sounding unusually smooth and Gladio hummed in response.  
"Good to know. Well then, wish you a good night, Iggy. Love you," the shield added with a soft voice and ended the call before he could hear the advisor's answer.  
"Love you as well," Ignis whispered into the darkness of his own room and was surprised by his own words.

A giddy and warm feeling spread through his chest, his lips twitching into a smile he couldn't suppress. What was happening to him lately?!

Right then his phone lit up with a message from Gladio.

Gladio:  
_Noct wishes you a good night as well_ ♥

A picture was added to the message, making the advisor's smile even wider. The prince was sleeping peacefully, his head pillowed on Gladio's broad chest. The moon cast enough light to make out Noct's facial features, his soft lips slightly parted.

The picture seemed to cast a spell on him and the advisor relaxed into his sheets as well, the exhaustion from the week settling in, as he closed his eyes and soon fell asleep, his phone still in his hand.

Ignis startled as he felt a sudden vibration on his chest. Semi somnolently he picked up his phone and squinted at the bright display. Half past two, he must have slept for about an hour.

He opened his messenger app and was surprised to see a text from Prompto.

Prompto:  
_You still up...?_

Ignis:  
_Did something happen?_

Prompto:  
_Oh, uh, nothing in particular. Just can't sleep._

Ignis:  
_Is something on your mind?_

After staring at his phone for three minutes, more than once reading the notification that Prompto was typing, only to receive no message at all, Ignis pressed the call button without thinking about it too much.

"Oh, uh, hi," Prompto stuttered as he received the call.  
"I hope you don't mind me calling. My eyes are a little tired, so talking is easier," the tactician stated and put Prompto on speaker, his phone laying next to him.  
"Oh, I don't want to keep you up!"  
"It's alright. What's on your mind?"

"It's just... I don't know how to say it, it's stupid," the blond mumbled and Ignis's heart broke at the thought that Prompto was once again beating himself up mentally.  
"I am sure it is not stupid. I promise I won't judge you," the advisor reassured.  
"Well, it's just, I am scared and disappointed about myself that I am scared and that I totally messed up," the young one whispered, his voice so broken Ignis was afraid he'd start crying any moment.  
"Scared of what?" Ignis asked because he wasn't sure if this was a case of anxiety or if the horror movie was indeed hunting him.

"Many things," Prompto answered at once and the advisor patiently waited for him to elaborate. "Like... this stupid movie for example."  
"So you are scared because of a movie that was made with the intention of scaring people," Ignis simply stated, "My apologies, but I don't see anything wrong with that."  
A short snort followed by a little chuckle fell from Prompto's lips and the advisor smiled triumphantly.  
"If you put it like that, I feel a little better," the blond admitted.  
"It is often a question of perspective. What else is bothering you? Maybe we can dissolve it together."  
"Well, it's... Amica really wanted to see that movie even though she knew it would be scary," Prompto began to explain and Ignis felt his gut turn just at the mention of her name. "She said the plot was supposed to be good and she would be able to endure the scary parts as long as I'd be there to support her."

This little witch. By now Ignis was sure she had chosen that movie only to have a reason to cling to Prompto. He had thought romance movies would be the greatest danger, but maybe he'd been wrong and it were horror movies all along.  
"Well, you have watched the movie with her. That's support, isn't it?" Ignis tried but knew the argument was weak.

"I was so scared myself I couldn't even think about supporting her, Iggy. She clung to me in agony, but I just leaned away from her and into Gladio. I don't know if it's the whole shield thing, but it just felt safer with him."

He probably should not have been happy about Prompto being scared, instead he found it was Prompto's realization of preference. That he'd rather lean on Gladio than turning to her.

"It's just..." Prompto continued, not giving Ignis a chance to say something, "I wanted to be like that. Gladio is so strong and you feel safe around him. Amica needed a friend like that and I thought I could be the one, but as it turns out, I'm a failure."

"Now, now, you are _not_ a failure," Ignis cut in at once, "everyone has their strengths and weaknesses."  
"But Gladio easily manages to make everyone feel safe. I admire that. I wanted to be able to do that as well." Frustration was clearly audible in Prompto's voice.

"While Gladio isn't a role model in every aspect, I have to admit that he certainly is when it comes to protecting his loved ones. But you have your fortes as well, Prompto, just like everyone else does, don't forget that." Ignis whispered the last part of the sentence as a smile crept upon his face in remembrance of all the times Prompto had brightened his mood with his cheerfulness.

"What even is my _forte_?" Prompto asked and Ignis had to suppress a sigh. Of course, the young one had trouble seeing his own amenity.

"Prompto, darling..."  
"D-darling?" Prompto stuttered agitatedly and Ignis was startled awake at once. That one had slipped his tired mind, but he wouldn't take it back in a situation like this.  
"Yes, darling. _You_ have the incomparable ability to cheer up people. Whenever someone else is down, you are there to support them and encourage them. I have no idea if you are even aware of the fact how often you have made Noctis smile no matter how worn out he has been. In fact, he has become so much livelier and more optimistic since you have come into his life."  
"Really?" Prompto asked, his voice a mix of hope and insecurity.  
"Yes, really. And that does not apply to Noct alone. When it comes to cheering up people, you even neglect your own priorities and well-being. In that aspect, you are just as Gladio who you admire for this treat. Just think about today: You have always hated horror movies and would never watch one on your account, but you were willing to do so." _For he_ r. Ignis added mentally and it made his heart warm up due to Prompto's selflessness and made it crumble at the same time due to the fact he deemed her worthy of his selflessness.

"But I... I still failed today."  
"If you'd really failed, she would have left the cinema before the film had ended or she would have been more scared afterwards. Yet from what Gladio told me, she had been just fine?" Ignis was hoping for this to be right.

"Well, yeah, I guess, she was fine enough. That wasn't my merit, though." Prompto mumbled but still didn't sound convinced.

The advisor sighed. "I'll make an exception and tell you a secret."  
"A secret?" Prompto asked, voice clearly piqued with interest.  
"Yes, a secret. Please don't tell Noctis I've let you in on this one."  
"I won't!"  
"Okay. I do not recall the exact name of the videogame but it was one of these ego-shooter games for adults Gladio had bought Noct - put that one on Gladio's list for _not_ being a good role model," the advisor intercepted and earned a little chuckle from Prompto, "either way, Noctis had originally planned to play it on his own, but he was too scared. So he decided to play it with you."  
"What? That bastard!" Prompto complained playfully, "He had acted so high and mighty as we played it together, teasing me for being scared!"  
"Yes, actually, he had confided in me that it was less scary to him when he saw how scared you were."  
"Huh?"  
"He said he focused on your cute reactions and comments instead of the scary elements of the game."  
"But I... I was just babbling scared nonsense! You know that, you've been there sometimes."  
"I've been there, yes," Ignis answered with a smile thinking back to this time, "and I'm ashamed to admit that have to agree with Noct. It was just purely adorable how you squeezed one of the couch cushions and loudly suspected an even greater evil behind every corner of the game. The game itself wasn't half as intimidating as you feared it to be. There wasn't even one jump scare although you predicted one every time Noctis moved on with the story. Pardon me, but you were so agitated, it really was adorable. I even had trouble to concentrate on cooking as I watched you."  
"Come on, Iggy! I have no idea if you are praising me or teasing me!" Prompto exclaimed and the advisor chuckled.  
"My apologies. I really shouldn't take joy in your agony -and believe me, I don't- but that just once more showed your ability to brighten everything up, even if it's unintentionally. When you are around it always feels like the sun is shining and one's worries aren't as huge as they appeared to be before," Ignis admitted with a smile.

"That is... I, uhm, even for you? You always seem so stressed, Iggy. Am I able to make it easier for you as well?" Prompto asked sheepishly.  
"Certainly, darling. It always brightens my mood when I visit Noct's apartment after an exhausting day of work and I am greeted by your smile," the tactician admitted with a smile himself.  
"Oh, I was always scared that maybe you might prefer some silence after a stressful day or that I might annoy you with my babbling," the blond's voice got quieter with every sentence.  
"You never do that, darling. You are neither babbling nor annoying me. I enjoy your cheerfulness whenever you talk about chocobos or photography. And I don't mind listening to you complaining about your school day either. Even Noct fills in some comments when you talk about your day. Before you'd become friends, things had been a little... stressed between Noct and me. He hadn't talked on his own accord and I've had no intention to push him either. Sometimes we've spent the whole evening in silence. He'd been lazing around on the couch and I'd been cooking. But since you started coming along everything has gotten livelier again and I am grateful for that."

"Wow, that... I... Thank you, Iggy. I can't express it as perfectly as you, but _you_ have the ability to cheer people up as well, really. But I guess you already know that you are perfect," the young one chuckled sheepishly.  
"I am far from perfect, but thank you nonetheless."  
"Oh come on, Iggy. Stop being humble! You never fail at anything! Just try to tell me one thing about you that isn't perfect."  
"Well, as I try my best to always fulfill my duty and look out for the people dear to me, I have a tendency to forget looking after myself - often shown in me having a tendency to skip meals as I'm just too busy," the advisor admitted and guiltily remembered that he hadn't had dinner today. In fact, his lunch at the cafeteria had been his only meal today.

"People dear to you..." Prompto repeated mumblingly, too quiet for Ignis to fully get it.  
"Is something the matter?"  
"Oh, uh, no. But you are right, overworking yourself _is_ a weakness of yours!"  
"It is. I am trying to improve myself in that aspect, but until then I need to rely on you and the others to watch over me."  
"Don't worry, I will!"  
"I know you do, you even went out of your way to give me a massage today," Ignis remembered fondly.  
"And I'll gladly do it again! And afterwards, we can have a meal together," the blond added cheerfully.  
"That sounds like a good plan," the tactician admitted.

"Good! Well then, thank you for talking to me, Iggy, it really helped. I'm sure I'll be able to sleep now," Prompto said sincerely.  
"I am glad to hear that. Don't hesitate to contact me again if you need someone to talk to or to listen to you," Ignis offered.  
"Alright, thanks! Good night, Iggy."  
"Good night. Sleep well, darling," the advisor whispered and felt his heart beating faster as he ended the call. He was way too excited to fall asleep again soon, but he didn't mind.

Talking to Prompto had been worth it.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Check out my Profile to find me on Tumblr or Twitter!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SophiaHoppia/profile)   
> 

**Author's Note:**

> [Check out my Profile to find me on Tumblr or Twitter!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SophiaHoppia/profile)   
> 


End file.
